Picture Perfect
by ONEsword
Summary: AU: They are young, hot and successful. Santana Lopez is one of the most influential fashion photographers in New York. What happens when she meets the mysterious blonde model during a fashion show?
1. A beginning

**AU: They are young, hot and successful. Santana Lopez is one of the most influential fashion photographers in New York. Brittany Pierce, model and newly crowned "Newcomer of The Year" on the runways.  
****With great success comes...**

**Brittana and Pezberry friendship.  
****Rated M for different reasons.**

**A/N: **Hola amigos. This is my first fanfic ever.  
I was looking for a supermodel Britt story, but didn't find any, so I decided to make one myself. Feel free to let me know if there is one out there! I want to reeeead!  
I guess it would have been more "convenient" to make Brittany the photographer, but helloooo, she forgets the lens cap on! (and she's a bit taller than Santana, so, yeah).  
It might be a little jumpy and maybe even slow, but I hope that will change.  
Sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes, I think there's lots of them. Lets blame that on my foreign-ness, shall we?  
Let me know if you like. I might just continue!

Oh. I don't own Glee.

**CHAPTER 1.**

Santana Lopez was one of New York's most influential fashion photographers, at the age of 25.  
She was not only good behind the camera, but she worked it like the supermodels in front of the camera as well if she wanted to.  
She got her first camera, a disposable camera, at the age of two.  
The camera and her, literally, clicked in a flash.  
Now, twenty-three years later, she was considered to be an up and coming icon in the fashion world, hired by some of the biggest fashion magazines and some of the finest fashion brands from all over the world. Famous for her daring and innovative concepts, not afraid of anything.  
She somewhat enjoyed her work and knew ever since the beginning that this was her call in life, she didn't expect her work to become so popular and she certainly didn't expect herself to be seen as an up and coming icon in the industry. Honestly, fashion photographer was not her ultimate idea of a life. But it was fine for now.  
After all - she was young, hotter than fire and more successful than her parents could ever dream of becoming.

Rachel Berry was a young woman with big dreams, hoping to become a singer on Broadway. Working as Santana Lopez's assistant was just a short stop on the way, short stop on the way, meaning about two years and still counting. Details. She just wanted to wait for the right moment, anyway.  
The both girls met at high school, Santana ruling the school with an iron fist, Rachel being at the bottom of the ladder and self-accalimed leader of the Glee club. They usually didn't acknowledge each other in the hallways, other than Rachel receiving a slushie thrown in her face from time to time, the Latina being the one with an evil smirk on her face as the shorter girl ran towards the bathroom to wash off the cold and sticky liquid.  
Somehow, they connected and forgave each other through senior year and had since then been friends, nagging and banter each other whenever they got the chance, which was something included in their daily schedule. The banter usually came from Santana, but Rachel wasn't afraid to speak up anymore.  
Even though Rachel annoyed Santana more than anyone walking on Earth with her happiness and constant singing (and talking while she didn't sing), Santana enjoyed the company of Rachel, even though she would never ever admit that to the shorter brunette, ever.  
At the same time, Rachel found a certain calm in being around the fiery Latina, they knew each other better than anyone and would probably be considered best friends if it weren't for Santana denying the fact that she would "never be 'best friend' with a person as annoying as Berry", to quote Santana.  
But Rachel knew better, she knew that, deep down in her cold heart, Santana appreciated her as much as she appreciated Santana.

Four years earlier, right after graduating high school, they both decided to run away together and share an apartment in New York to pursue their dreams.  
Rachel attending the prestigious New York Academy of the Dramatic Arts, her dream coming true.  
Santana taking night classes in graphic design while freelancing as a photographer at the same time as she worked as a cashier in a supermarket, not something she hoped would last forever.  
She was unhappy. She snapped at people more frequently, she snapped at her friends and the employees and customers at the supermarket for annoying her and making her day worse with their presence.  
It was a miracle that the store manager, Mr. Figgins, still let her work there after receiving complaints from customers, but he was a weirdly understanding man and only told her that "great things will come to those who are patient", to quote the older man.

It all happened so quickly, the day Santana got the call about the open spot as a contributing photographer for the leading fashion magazine, Valentina. At first she thought it was a joke, that Rachel must have called some of her acting friends for revenge after the little joke she had pulled on Rachel, including whipped cream and slippery floor.  
But the man on the other side of the line just laughed at the Latinas assumption and assured her that this was the real deal.  
The man explained that the Editor-in-chief had seen some of her already published portraits and fell in love immediately. The concepts, the expressions, the feelings awoken, the whole thing. They wanted her. They wanted her art.  
After being completely convinced that it was actually real, she didn't need to think twice before accepting the offer and planning a meeting at the headquarters the next day.

_"Rachel, you home?" the Latina screamed as she rushed into their shared apartment. It wasn't big, only two bedrooms, a small kitchen and a living room with enough space to fit a pretty big television, but it was enough for the two of them and their budget didn't really allow something bigger anyway, at least not unless they wanted to live out of eating garbage every month._

_"Ouch. In here!" the shorter brunette replied from underneath the kitchen sink, she just hit her head as she got scared by the unexpected scream from Santana._

_"What the fuck are you doing down there?" Santana burst out laughing as she saw Rachel crawling on the floor with her ass in the air._

_"Language. I was just, uh, I dropped my engagement ring in the sink and it fell down the pipes. But I got it now." Rachel said as she crawled out from underneath the sink, holding up her silver ring, a small blush creeping up on her face._

_"Honey. I think you're trying for the wrong business. Why don't you work as a plumber?" Santana said jokingly, still laughing and shaking her head slightly as she looked down at the mess that was all of the tools sprawled out on the kitchen floor._

_"And don't you think that this is a sign? You're not supposed to be with that doofus of a fiance. He's not even..." Santana continued._

_"Hey! Don't talk about Finn! He's my high school sweetheart and I love him dearly..." Rachel replied and Santana could only huff in response before walking away, not wanting to hear anything about Finn._

_Finn Hudson, Rachel's fiance since a few months back and boyfriend since a few years. Santana had always thought that Rachel was captial "G", gay, and when she found out that she was dating the man that could only be described as a doofus with a dopey grin, looking like a giant too, she sure was surprised. Finn still lived in their hometown Lima, Ohio and Santana knew that Rachel had a hard time handling the long distance relationship, but she couldn't help pushing it sometimes._

_"I actually wanted to talk to you about a thing" Santana began, as she walked back into the kitchen, looking at her roommate who now stood by the stove, cooking some vegan food that looked really gross._

_"Yeah?" Rachel curiously asked as she looked up from the pans where she cooked bean sprouts, hummus and tofu._

_"I got a job offer today, I said yes" Santana continued and smiled.  
__  
"Yeah? Continue" Rachel said and looked down to continue preparing her food, only half listening to what her friend said._

_"Well, it's only a regular freelancing thing, but still..."_

_"Aha..." Rachel nodded, still only half listening while stirring her food._

_"... Contributing photographer for Valentina Magazine..." 'Valentina Magazine' was the only thing Rachel heard, this got all of her attention and she now stared at the Latina with wide eyes._

_"You mean, THE, Valentina Magazine? Not only the biggest magazine in New York, but the best magazine in, well, probably the best magazine in this country?" Rachel said excitedly, but not really believing what she heard. Her roommate usually tried to pull jokes on her, so she was always ready for her friend to burst out laughing and scream something like 'Got ya', she did indeed have some trust issues with the Latina._

_"No, Rachel. I'm not kidding you" Santana exclaimed as she sensed her friend not believing anything she just said._

_"Oh my Godness! This is so exciting! Congratulations!" Rachel saw that Santana wasn't joking with her and decided to jumped up and down in excitement. Hugging her friend, as Santana awkwardly patted Rachel's back, still not being used to her roommates cheery nature._

_It was the next day. The day when Santana was supposed to meet the Editor-in-chief for Valentina.  
__The Valentina headquartes were located on Madison Avenue, not really the quarters where Santana usually hung out, but a nice change compared to Chinatown.  
__When she walked into the building she was met with women looking like models all over the place, only spotting a few men. Everyone were beautiful and very fashionable, something that should've been expected. It was a fashion magazine, after all. She did almost feel out of place, even though she had dressed up in her best dress and blazer, matching with her favorite pair of pumps.  
__The interior was stylish and very modern. Purple, silver and white, just like the magazine's graphic profile. The bottom floor was enormous, Santana could only imagine what the other floors looked like._

_"I got an appointment with the Editor-in-chief. My name is Santana Lopez", the Latina told the receptionist, a cute teenager, with glasses framing her deep blue eyes and long blonde hair framing her face, and a wide smile grazing her lips. Santana couldn't help but smile back._

_"Yes, Holly will be down here in a few minutes. You can take a seat in our super-comfy lounge in the meantime" the receptionist replied after a short call, and Santana thanked her and walked over to an armchair located in the lounge area._

_After a few minutes a tall blonde woman walked up to her. She could see all of the people around her making way for her, as if she was some kind of Goddess.  
__She was probably in her early thirties, probably a former model, Santana thought._

_"You must be Santana Lopez? I'm Holly Holliday, just call me Holly. I'm the Editor-in-chief for Valentina, it's a pleasure to meet you" the blonde woman introduced herself and shook Santana's hand as Santana rose up from the comfortable armchair._

_Holly looked very young to actually be the Editor-in-chief for the biggest fashion magazine in the Big Apple, Santana thought to herself._

_The women introduced each other and decided to take the elevator up to Holly's office. Top floor. Killer view over the whole city. Santana was actually stunned as she entered the top floor and looked out through the panoramic windows. Holly told her that Valentina's office only consisted of four floors, only. The floors were enormous and different departments were located on different floors._

_"Beautiful view, huh" Holly asked as she saw Santana's stunned expression as she looked out over New York City._

_"It's fucking amazing" Santana exclaimed and realized that she just said 'fucking' in front of her possible employer. She blushed but turned around to take a seat in front of Holly's desk, who didn't seem to notice the Latina's choice of words._

_"Sure is! I'm sure you could take some nice pictures from up here. That's why you're here today too, isn't it. To discuss work" Holly smiled brightly at Santana as she looked through some files on her desk._

_"Yeah, your assistant, Blaine, told me that you had seen some of my work?" Santana said, more as a question than an actual statement. She was a bit unsure of what to actually say._

_"I did, it was love at first sight I tell you" Holly beamed and reached into the file and picked up a few printed images, Santana immediately recognized them as some of her own photographs._

_"I especially love what you did with these" the older woman said as she laid out the images in front of them. Still smiling as she looked at the Latina.  
__  
"You are truly talented, I can tell that you will go far in your career if you continue. I think you got potential to change the fashion photography industry" she continued._

_"Thank you. That really means a lot to me. But don't you need any references before actually hiring me?" Santana asked, looking down at her lap a little nervous. She was still a little hesitant about the whole job offer, it couldn't be that easy. Even though she actually sat down with the Editor-in-chief right now, in what probably was the most amazing and luxurious office she had ever seen._

_"Sweet cheeks, that's already done" Holly laughed at the Latina who looked chocked at the editor's forwardness in already coming up with a nickname.  
__Holly just ignored Santana's expression and continued._

_"Well, I saw your portfolio online as well. Then I made a few calls. I saw that you actually had done some freelancing for one of my old friends, Will Schuester over at Macaroni Magazine? He highly recommended you. I also read in your biography that you take night courses, I made some calls to your teachers there, they all praised your skills when it comes to photo editing and design" Santana just nodded, surprised that her new employer seemed to know so much about her past work experiences without even talking with her before. Also very surprised that her teachers actually said that about her, they always seemed so stiff and unimpressed by her work._

_"That's it? I got the job?" Santana asked surprised. She didn't expect it to be such an easy task to get the job._

_"Definitely. Shall we talk about your payment?" Holly still beamed at the Latina who looked ecstatic over her new work, this was definitely better than being a cashier._

_The two women made some small talk to get to know each other. They talked about everything from Will Schuester (who, apparently, Holly had dated back in the day! Who would've known that Will had such a great taste in women), Santana's photography and life in New York. Santana also found out that she would earn a small fortune for every work she would assign._

_Santana was more than surprised that a woman with such a high rank in the fashion industry could be that kind and humble as Holly Holliday was, she had heard stories about other people in the industry before.  
__She also learnt that it was Holly who pretty much set the bar in what fashion that was considered hot and what was considered not, that probably being the reason to why people spoke and acted like she was a Goddess. She never expected the fashion world to be like that, and this was just the beginning for her to see things from a fashion perspective.  
__The two women were about to thank each other for the meeting, Santana wouldn't work from the office, but was always welcome to come by whenever she wanted to visit._

_Before leaving Santana couldn't stop thinking about a certain question,  
__"Aren't you a little young to be working as the Editor-in-chief for a magazine as big as Valentina?" Santana blurted out without really thinking. Santana stood wide eyed and embarrassed, not really expecting the words to come out. It's not the ideal question to ask, before you have even really started working. This earned a giggle from Holly._

_"It's okay. I guess I'm still young, considered my position. I actually landed the job thanks to my great grandmother, Valentina Lovejoy, the founder of Valentina Magazine" this time Santana let out a loud snort that made Holly laugh. Valentina Lovejoy? Is it Valentine's Day or what? What's up with all of these names?_

_"I know. My family is kind of known for being creative when it comes to names" the blonde continued, smiling at the younger woman in front of her._

_"Well, I have always loved expressing myself with fashion. It was convenient with my great grandmother running this magazine. The industry is always on the move and I like keeping myself updated, even though I'm the one who pretty much choose what's hot or not, but that's not the point" Holly said and smiled wide at Santana who smiled back._

_They both thanked each other for the meeting and Santana thanked Holly for believing in her enough to hire her.  
__Santana almost jumped out of the Valentina headquarters. She was happy. Things were finally looking up._

**PRESENT DAY**

It has been three years since she got her first assigned job at Valentina Magazine.  
She still remember the first photo shoot she did for them, the proud look of Holly and the feeling inside of hear which screamed 'success'!  
When she first saw the garments that the models were supposed to wear, it immediately hit her what kind of shoot she wanted to do. It might not have been the most convenient concept for a fashion magazine with the target group being women in the age, well, every woman read Valentina.  
_"I want it to be science fiction, future-esque themed. The area should look like a science lab. I think it would go well with the feathers, metal, leather and colors of the fashion pieces. Kind of like a mad scientist creating monsters" the Latina told excitedly and confidently to the women gathered at the meeting.  
__The pitch mostly got weird looks, except from a certain blonde Editor-in-chief, Holly smiled brightly and applauded the idea. Holliday had the last word after all, and she believed that this idea could work, even though their audience weren't science fiction nerds.  
__It was a confident young woman standing in front of them, Holly knew that she did the right thing to hire this young firecracker.  
__Santana ended her pitch with; "I want everyone to find their inner nerd."_

_Most of the women who had attended the pitch meeting got surprised when they finally saw the result of Santana's shoot. It could only be described as innovative and stunning.  
__Holly looked like a proud mother while seeing what her latest photographer had created and noticed the stunned reaction of her co-workers when Santana showed the pictures from the shoot, which caused the Editor-in-chief to let out a giggle.  
__Santana had gotten access to a modern science lab for the shoot, Valentina had helped her get four beautiful models with different facial structures, perfect for the concept. They all did an amazing job in front of the camera and the crew behind the camera killed it.  
__Santana had never felt better. This was it._

The feisty Latina enjoyed to party, and who would say no to partying with A-list celebrities and supermodels? Not this girl!  
Most nights after work she would hit it up on exclusive night clubs with her newly found model friends. They would all dance and drink the nights away and not go home until the sun was rising in the morning.  
Some nights Santana even ended up in bed together with a supermodel, something that Rachel wasn't too fond of.  
You see, Santana did not only like to party, she enjoyed the so-called after party in her or someone else's bedroom as well.  
Santana liked the ladies and would lie if she said she didn't sleep around.  
Considering her rising status in the industry she always had to be careful, Santana knew better than to expect people to actually like and care for who she really was. She knew that there were people out there that would use her to get themselves higher up on the ladder in the industry.

Santana quickly realized that the fashion world wasn't what she expected it to be, not that she really had any expectations the day she walked into the Valentina office. But the dark side of the industry began to show and she didn't like what she saw.  
She saw the models, her friends, becoming skinnier and skinnier. She saw them do drugs and walk the runways, not really-really being there.  
It wasn't only an issue for this industry or generation, but for everyone involved, the audience, the people. The fashion industry set the bar for what others think is hot, it's all about influence.  
There was nothing Santana could do to help, but she wanted to change that.

As time passed Santana realized that her work got more and more praised in the media and among the readers. With her gaining popularity she also realized that she needed an assistant to help her out with business calls, bookings and other appointments, and who fit better for that position than her roommate - Rachel Berry.  
Rachel gladly accepted the offer when Santana had asked if she would be interested. To Rachel, being Santana's assistant meant doing what she usually did, but actually getting paid doing it, it was a win-win situation.  
Right before hiring Rachel as her assistant she also began to get bigger offers from all around the world, which meant more traveling for Santana.  
Her work schedule was often packed with shoots for bigger and smaller fashion spreads, but Rachel tried to do her best to not let Santana do too many shoots and work too much than what would be healthy.  
She was still often working for Valentina Magazine, after all, it was thanks to Holly and Valentina that she had gotten so far in her career after only a year in the industry.  
A year quickly turned into three and three turned into...  
With great success came more pressure, with more pressure came more stress and Santana did not enjoy the work as much as she once did when she started out.  
However, she could not just leave. Hell, she was successful, she got everyone and everything she wanted, and success and influence was exactly what she wanted. She was on top of the ladder, just like it was in high school. The only difference was, this time she ruled even greater things, not just stupid cheerleaders and jocks. She would not let anything ruin this, this was her moment.  
So she stayed. She was getting back to her old ways of snapping at people.  
She tried not to. But it was a hard task to compel when the models didn't agree and acted stupid and innocent with her instead.


	2. Blondie

**A/N: **Hello again!  
First of all, thanks for the story alerts and favorites! I'm going to assume that at least a few of you want me to continue with the story, even though you didn't leave any reviews. But you know, feel free to leave a review as well!  
I'm not hundred percent sure where the story is going, but I might have an idea! I hope it won't be "meh" in the end and that you will continue to read!  
I know that this story sounds kiiiind of unrealistic and in the future even a little predicatble, but yeeeeah. It's fiction!  
Anyway, I wanted to update already since it's going pretty slow in the beginning. It sure is a lot of Pezberry here.

I do have friends who work as professional models, but other than that, I have no idea how the industry in general actually works... other than what I have read and seen on television/film.  
Sorry in advance for any grammar/spelling mistakes, I'm still blaming that on my foreign-ness and not having any spell check in my editing program, whoops!

Here's a little M, for reasons. I'm not very good at the M rated stuff, but feel free to unleash your own imagination for it instead.

**CHAPTER 2**

**Three months ago**

"Santana! Are you ready to go? You need to be at the airport in forty." Santana could hear Rachel scream from downstairs.  
It was almost a year ago since Santana and Rachel had moved in to their new duplex on the better side of the city, it was time to move forward and away from the old apartment that held many good memories. Their move did get emotional, especially when they had to say goodbye to their close friends and neighbors, Mike and Tina, even though they would still meet up it wouldn't be as frequently.  
But due to Santana's high income and generosity towards Rachel, the both of them could finally move into a bigger and better place without worrying that they would have cops knocking on the door at 4AM because of shootings in the apartment underneath theirs.

"Yes mother, I'm coming" Santana screamed from her bedroom.

"Not that tone when you're talking to me, young lady." Rachel said in a serious tone as Santana walked down the stairs with a suitcase that could probably fit two small grown ups and a backpack slung over her shoulder. Santana let out a loud huff in disapproval and continued towards the door.

"Are you coming or what?" she asked the smaller brunette as she walked out the door. Rachel hurried up right after the Latina and turned to lock the door before leaving.

XXXX

"You sure you can handle this alone? I could always get a last minute ticket and come with you?" the shorter brunette said as they waited at the airport.

"Honey. I'm not stupid. I usually go alone for business trips, this is not different. I know you want to go on another vacation, and you will get more time off soon" the Latina assured her pleading friend. Santana knew that Rachel still was devastated after her break up with the doofus, even though it was a decision made from both of them and the fact that they had left each other on good terms, it still hurt Rachel since she had left her safety net that was Finn Hudson. It had almost been a year now and Santana could only wish for her friend to soon move on, she only had to find her friend the perfect partner, a fitting psycho that could handle a partner that would burst out singing whenever she felt for it. Santana smirked at her own brilliant idea to find someone that was crazy enough for her roommate.

"Fine. I'll miss you though." It was always sentimental for Santana and Rachel to say goodbye to each other. This time was no different.

"Berry. Chill. I will only be gone for two weeks" she couldn't help it, but she burst out laughing when she noticed the tears forming in her friends eyes. "But I will miss you too." the Latina reassured after a short pause.

"Really?" she looked up hopeful, "And I want you to pay for my trip to Aruba." Rachel pointed at her friend with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah, we'll see about that" Santana said with a huff, but smiled.  
They said their final goodbye's as Rachel waved to Santana as she walk through the boarding control.

XXXX

"Welcome to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol" Santana read the big signs as she walked out of the airport to take a cab to get to her nearby hotel. It was late and she was tired after the long flight, she just wanted to sleep and get to work the day after.

"Where can I take you?" the taxi driver asked with a heavy Dutch accent as Santana entered the cab. In some way, the driver reminded her of her former employer, Mr. Figgins, he really looked like him, the differences was that this man was Dutch and Figgins from India.  
Santana let the driver do his thing and drove her to her hotel.  
She watched out through the window as they passed parks, buildings and people.  
She let her thoughts wander away, thinking of the night before, the thought of her amazing one night stand made her blush. It had been a great day, starting in her own studio with a photo session with some great new faces. It later ended up with heated kisses with one of the models as everyone else had left. They decided to share a cab back to her and Rachel's apartment and luckily her roommate wasn't home, she didn't need another 'huff' from her friend. They hurried in to the duplex and could barely keep their hands off of each other as they took off each other's coats and rushed in to the bedroom to spend the night there. Even though Santana was usually the shorter one, she was always the one in charge, she wouldn't have it any other way.  
She woke up when the bed dipped and saw the blonde girl she spent the night with starting to get dressed. A woman exactly her taste, she thought. No awkward cuddles, no disgusting morning breath, no strings attached. This kind of sex was what she lived for, the one that left her speechless and without further expectations.  
She was woken up from the thoughts of her past escapades when the driver spoke up and told her that they had arrived to the hotel.

"Great things will come to those who are patient. Enjoy your stay here!" It was the exact thing that Mr. Figgins had told her with his heavy Indian accent, after receiving complaints from the supermarket customers. Now Santana was truly convinced that this driver was somehow a Dutch relative to Mr. Figgins, she couldn't help but smile as she realized how stupid that sounded. She thanked the driver and stepped out to breathe in some fresh Amsterdam air, well, as fresh as big city air could possibly get.  
Her trip to Amsterdam was both for her own pleasure, but she wouldn't be choosing the destination if it weren't because of the fact that she was hired to work behind the scenes for the fashion week. It wasn't one of the bigger fashion weeks, like New York or Paris, but it was nice to get away for some fun adventures. Well, she didn't want to miss the infamous Red-Light District either that her old friend Puck had previously told her about. If it was as good as he had told her, she would enjoy her stay, for sure.

The first three days of fashion week passed relatively quick. She did her job, taking pictures behind the scenes before the shows started, after the shows and during the shows out in front of the runways.  
Unfamiliar faces greeted her and praised her for her work. It was always surprising for Santana to hear people talk about her work even away from home. It felt somewhat surreal.  
She met some of her old friends that she usually didn't have the time to meet that often since they all traveled around the world.  
She also saw some of her old one night stands from a distance, but tried to hide away from them as good as possible. She was a ninja, a pretty good one too.  
The shows were a great success, not to forget mentioning the wild parties that the different fashion brands hosted every night. The Dutch people knew how to party.

On the final day of fashion week she spotted an interesting face backstage that she had never seen before.  
It was a young woman, probably a few years younger than herself. Her looks weren't that special. Blonde, tall, probably a model. But there was something about her that made Santana interested, really interested.  
She had found her next prey.

"Agnes Meyer! Meyer? Come here!" she heard the blonde woman scream in a heavy Dutch accent. She figured that the unknown woman in front of her must be working with the upcoming show and wasn't a model, even though she had the potential. Santana quickly snapped a few photos of the blonde woman, but she wasn't quick enough. The tall woman turned her face around and caught Santana through the lens and gave her a smile and a small wave, then she turned back as a model approached her and covered Santana's view.  
Santana stood rooted. She looked down on the small screen to take a closer look at the pictures she just took. The woman was stunning. Somehow she recognized her from somewhere, but she couldn't put her fingers on it. Maybe she just got a familiar face.  
Santana's thoughts got interrupted as a crew member told everyone to get ready since the show would soon begin.  
Santana spotted the blonde woman as she walked out to the front of the runway, she caught the small wink that the blonde gave her and smiled back.  
"Piece of cake" Santana mumbled to herself as she smirked to herself as she took her seat in front of the runway.  
Little did she know that a blonde woman across the room was looking at her direction with the same smirk on her face.

To Santana's disappointment she didn't see the still unknown blondie that she had spotted backstage earlier. She was hoping to catch her afterwards, but couldn't find her anywhere. After asking and searching for her without any result, she finally gave up. She didn't want to sound too creepy and desperate, even though she might have been, but that was no one else's business anyway.  
With a sad face she returned back to the hotel for a quick nap before the final party.

The theme for the evening was reversed cocktail. Santana looked forward to seeing the men come up in their best cocktail dresses. But she couldn't help but look forward to see some hot models killing it in the androgynous look.  
Even though Santana was going to stay sober for the night, that didn't mean that she wasn't allowed to dress up and enjoy the evening.  
Santana had picked up the perfect suit for the night, the blazer was a maroon color, with matching tie. Underneath she would wear a slim fit silver shirt with black pants and oxford shoes. The garments where tight around all the right places.  
Santana eyed herself in the mirror with a satisfied look on her face.  
"Only one thing missing..." she told herself and walked away to pick up something from her suitcase.  
"Success!" Santana exclaimed as she put on her big black fedora hat and winked to her reflection.

The party went on smoothly. She danced and caught up with some of her friends.  
But she didn't really feel like staying for long since she had plans on exploring the city the day after.  
Right when Santana decided to head for the exit she spotted the blonde woman that she had seen earlier that day, she was talking to a man with brown hair, dressed in several layers of black, white and silver garments with a pair of oxfords, almost like her own shoes. "He must have missed the reversed theme for the evening, he look kind of feminine though" she thought to herself as she turned her attention back to the woman.  
She eyed the blonde from top to toe. She was wearing a black suit with a black shirt and a teal bow tie with something that looked like a duck print on. On her head she wore a top hat and her feet had the pleasure of being walked around with in a pair of teal high heels, which made her look even taller than she already was.  
She continued to look at the odd couple as a couple of people walked up to greet them.  
Suddenly the brunette man burst out laughing, he was bent over and cried, the others around them laughed as well while the blonde woman looked clueless.  
"Geez, he look like a giant baby when he laughs. Why doesn't his teeth show, he look like an idiot. Well, he kind of have a baby face too..." the Latina laughed inwardly at her own thoughts. Oh, she was such a bitch.  
She didn't notice the eyes staring at her from across the room.  
When she did notice she instantly stopped laughing. She didn't want anyone to think that she was a lunatic without friends, laughing at her own jokes.  
The blonde woman had excused herself to get closer to the short brunette who finally could get a closer look as well. She was beautiful. The eyes, a perfect smile...

"Hallo" the blonde woman greeted and waved, merely feet away from the Latina. As they stood right in front of each other Santana noticed that the blonde wouldn't be that much taller than herself without her heels. "Want to go somewhere else, so we can talk without screaming at each other?" Santana nodded and smiled she got dragged out of the venue.

"Hi" the blonde greeted Santana once again where they could hear each other. The sun was still up and you could feel the warm summer breezes.

"H-hi" Santana stuttered out. She had never ever experienced being actually speechless before. She was usually very confident, cocky even, but right now she was stunned by the beauty that was in front of her.

"Want to go and grab drinks somewhere else? The party was kind of lame anyway." Santana could hear her heavy accent and found it extremely attractive. After a little debate on where to go, they finally decided to head out for a cup of coffee instead.  
The blonde said that drinking responsibly was very important, Santana awkwardly agreed and followed the taller woman as she linked her pinky with Santana's.

They did some small talk on the way, and at the café, mostly about living in The Netherlands and Santana told everything about living life in New York.  
The blonde seemed very fascinated by the city from just hearing what the Latina said, however, she wondered where the 'Old York' was located, something that the Latina found somewhat amusing.  
They didn't talk about any personal details, but Santana didn't mind. She found it very exciting to talk to a stranger this way, it was something she had never done before.  
The time passed quickly, way to quick for Santana's liking and the café was soon about to close for the evening.

"Would you like to follow me back to my hotel?" Santana asked, feeling brave. It had been a great night so far, so why not make it better.

"I thought you'd never ask." the blonde jumped up and they both shared a taxi to the Latina's hotel where they sat in silence, staring into each others eyes with linked pinkies.

As they got closer to Santana's room they could barely keep their hands off of each other. Santana felt hotter than ever. This was what she had been anticipating the whole day.  
Santana closed the gap between them the second they got inside the room. She was in charge. She pressed her body closer to the taller woman who was now pressed up against the wall as she kissed her neck, her one hand on the wall behind the blonde, pressing the two as close as possible, while the other was gently stroking the woman's cheek. She took in the smell of her, she took in the way she almost could hear the blonde's heartbeat, she felt intoxicated.  
She could hear small moans erupting from the other woman, so she knew that she wanted this as much as her.  
They both fell down on the queen-sized bed, never letting go of each other or stopping with the kisses and exploring hands.  
Soon after they had hit the bed the blonde rolled over to straddle the smaller woman.  
Santana was not used to not being in charge, but this time she really didn't mind.

After a moment of soft kissing and nibbles, Santana's phone began ringing. Without looking at the caller ID she reached for it and answered, she already knew who the caller was.

"Can't talk right now." Santana replied while she tried to keep down her moans as the woman straddling her slowly kissed down her neck and let out a moan in her ear.

"You answered your phone I expect you to talk to me right now. You didn't call tonight, I was worried."

"Berry, I really can't talk right now" Santana said through the line as the blonde whispered a 'you have no idea how much I want you right now' as Santana felt a hand reaching underneath her shirt, touching her boob and pinching her nipple that quickly hardened under the touch. She couldn't hold back the erupting moan any longer and let it out. The blonde above her began to giggle and moved down to continue to ghost her lips over soft tanned skin.

"Santana! Are you having sex right now? You so are! Oh my God, oh my God... that's so..." that's the last thing Santana heard until she ended the call and turned off the phone completely.

"Who's berry? Isn't that a fruit?" the blonde had stopped kissing her for a moment and sat up between the Latinas legs with furrowed brows. Any other day Santana would've thought that a comment like that was the most idiotic thing ever, but this time she giggled and thought that it was the most adorable thing ever. Yes, Santana Lopez giggled. Giggled!

"Berry is a friend of mine" Santana replied and kissed the blonde's nose as she dragged the blonde closer again, with wandering hands she explored the woman on top of her. She never expected herself to be content with not being in charge of what would happen, but it was such a turn-on to be straddled and she could feel herself getting even hotter between her legs.

Their shirts were long gone, laying on the floor as the blonde began to unclasp the Latina's pants who felt a certain relief as she let the cool air hit her panty-clad wet core.  
The two women began to kiss each other passionately once again, like there was no tomorrow.  
Soon enough they slipped out of their clothes completely and stared in awe at each others naked bodies as they closed the gap between them to let their fingers and tongues do the handiwork.  
Soft moans and the smell of arousal filled the room as they kept going for hours, never letting go of each other.

They were out of breath, heavy breathing and heavy eyelids, it was almost morning when the two decided that it was time to sleep.  
Santana had never felt more safe with a stranger in her bed. She wanted the feeling to last forever, but deep down she knew better than that, it would never happen. She knew nothing about this woman, she could be a psycho for all she knew. With those thoughts, Santana fell asleep, nuzzled into blonde hair that smelled like a mix strawberry shampoo and sweat from their nightly activity.

XXXX

Santana was wide awake, however, she decided to pretend to be asleep when she felt movement and the loss of body contact when she was slowly being untangled from the blonde who had spent the night at her hotel room.  
For the first time in her life she wished that a woman would stay in bed with her to cuddle, she wanted to smell the hideous morning breath, she wanted to have amazing shower sex, eat breakfast in bathrobes, read the comic strips in the morning newspaper together, she wanted the whole package. It was weird, she had never wanted that before.  
But this wasn't a dream. The blonde was almost dressed and Santana had no idea what to do to stop the stunning woman in her room from leaving.  
The blonde walked closer to, what she thought, was a still sleeping brunette. She kissed her forehead and whispered a barely audible 'good bye'.  
She tried to sneak out through the door. A creak. Caught.

"Hey" a sleepy voice was heard from the bed as the blonde woman turned around in the door to face the Latina who had called for her. She was still laying naked in bed, no longer being wrapped up in the duvet. The blonde couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of her.

"What's your name?" Santana had to know, she knew that this was something special. She had felt it and she was pretty sure that the blonde had felt it too, they didn't need words to feel it. Everything felt exciting and she felt like a whole new person with the blonde in front of her. Why did she have to leave? Not only the sex was amazing, but the time that they had spent at the café was out of the ordinary and calming in a way that she had never felt towards another person. If Santana Lopez actually felt something for another person that isn't herself, it must be special.

"Quinn. Goodbye, Santana." With those words the blonde began to walk out, only turning around for a final wink. Leaving the Latina alone in bed.

Santana quickly dressed herself before going back to bed. She wanted to go back to sleep, it was still early and she had barely gotten any sleep during the night. She should be tired. But she couldn't let go of the blonde woman clouding her mind. She had apparently known her name and who she was all along, but she was pretty famous among the industry people and she did have quite the reputation as well.  
The night could only be described as mind blowing, but Santana felt like something, or someone, was missing.

XXXX

The last week in Amsterdam went by slow. She couldn't get her head off of a certain blonde named Quinn.  
Every time she walked down the streets of Amsterdam and saw a tall blonde, she turned around to see if it was The blonde, never with any success.  
She spent hours at bars and strip clubs, and Puck was right, the exotic dancers were something out of the ordinary, but she still didn't feel satisfied and she still felt like something was missing.  
She spent most of the nights alone in her hotel room, trying to find out who the mysterious blonde was. Trying to search on the internet with only a first name didn't bring any good results. She looked through the snapshots from backstage during fashion week, the smiling blonde waving at her. It had her melting.

She had promised Rachel regular calls every night. The day after her night activities with a certain blonde, Rachel could immediately tell that something was off with her friend. But she knew better than to ask questions directly to her when she was in an off state. She wondered if it had something to do with her calling in the middle of the act, but she had definitely caught Santana in more awkward situations than that.

**A/N:** Quinn in Amsterdam? What the...


	3. Calm Down

**A/N: **Thanks again for the story alerts! Big heart!  
I hope this story isn't too bad, review if you'd like. I know that I'd like that!

ps. Still don't own Glee.

**CHAPTER 3**

**PRESENT**

"What the actual fuck" Santana stammered as she looked up on a billboard on Times Square. Taking off her sunglasses only to see if what she actually saw was real.

"What?" Rachel said as she licked on her thumb after her vegan ice cream began melting in the heat.

"Look at that fucking billboard!" Santana exclaimed, her jaw dropping in pure shock.

"What about it?" Rachel looked up to see what all the fuss was about. Some new television show, some new food channel, some new fashion show, a new store opening... what really caught Rachel's eye was the billboard advertising a new Broadway musical.

"Don't you see that?" Santana was starting to get annoyed with Rachel who didn't seem to have her eyes on anything except for that stupid musical billboard.

"Calm down. I assume that you're not talking about the musical then. Can you please explain why you're cussing like a sailor?" Rachel really didn't have any clue at all to why Santana was screaming and looking like she had just seen a ghost. She didn't want her to do it among people. It wasn't good for any of their careers or reputations, not that Santana had a really good reputation as a people's person as it was. However, Rachel just hoped that no one would recognize her and take a picture. She couldn't risk her future as a Broadway star being ruined because she was friends with a screaming lunatic like Santana Lopez.

"You can calm yo tits woman" Santana replied which caused the shorter brunette to burst out laughing, now this received a glare from the Latina and people around them stared at them with a 'what the fuck'-look.

"Santana, what's the big deal with the billboards?" Rachel asked careful as she had calmed down herself from all the laughter, not wanting to say something that would upset the Latina furthermore.

"Look closely at the one about the upcoming fashion show" Rachel squinted her eyes to look closer.

It was advertising a new television show that wouldn't air until late next year.

Rachel thought it was a little early to advertise something that was so far away in time.

The poster was an image of ten models standing on a runway doing their signature poses. After a while she spotted a face that she somehow recognized. It was then it hit her.

It was the woman, Quinn, that Santana had told her about after her trip to Amsterdam, the one that she had interrupted that night at the hotel when she had called.

Her friend had practically been obsessed over this, still unknown, female since she got back from Amsterdam three months ago. She had shown her pictures that she had taken of her and she had tried to find her online without success, she had even asked some of her contacts without success either.

Santana had also shared some of the most intimate of stories, something that Rachel gladly would've appreciated not hearing, but it was too late for that now.

"Wow." was the only thing Rachel said as she looked at her friend.

"Yeah. Shit." Santana looked relieved. She had finally found her. Her blonde. Well, not exactly her blonde, but The blonde.

"So. What are you going to do now?" the Latina cocked an eyebrow and gave her friend a 'what the hell do you think'-look.

"Santana, I think it was a legitimate question. What exactly are you going to do now when you have found her, on a billboard. You still don't know her full name or who she is." the brunettes began walking again. Santana was deep in thought and didn't listen to Rachel until she repeated what she had said just moments ago.

"Honestly? I have no idea." Santana looked down on her feet as they walked down the packed streets of Manhattan.

"Really? Santana Lopez! Clueless!" Rachel exclaimed and let out a laugh as she received an evil glare from her friend. "Sorry. I think I got an idea though. Let's go and grab a latte and I'll tell you about it."

They walked towards their favorite café since a few years back.

The whole place had a very welcoming feeling, with soft music playing in the background and dimmed lights, making the whole place a lot cozier than the usual coffee chains.

It was the place where they used to relax, think and to breathe out. It was small, but usually not overcrowded. They had comfortable sitting areas and small triangle formed tables that would fit two or three people each. They had a small area with couches and bookshelves where you could study or work. It was perfect.

They even had a little garden in the back where you could sit if you would prefer an outdoor environment.

But most importantly, they served the best lattes, sandwiches and cakes in town.

"So, let's hear you out, Berry." Santana said as she sat down and sipped on her freshly made latte macchiato.

After an hour of planning how her next meeting with Quinn would go, they both sat with smirks grazing their faces.

"Berry, I never thought I would say this. But hell, you're brilliant!" Santana told as she had her mouth full of the chocolate cake that she had ordered in just moments ago.

"Thank you, thank you!" Rachel said dramatically as she beamed, gladly accepting all the praise she could get from Santana, even though it was because of something as small as this, it was a rarity. The thing was, that even a three-year-old could have come up with this idea. Here she sat, thinking that Santana Lopez was actually smart, maybe she was blinded by her crush and couldn't think clearly, Rachel smirked to herself as the thought hit her.

The idea was easy. Rachel would do all of the work, she was Santana's assistant after all.

Since this model, Quinn, was on a billboard, it would be way easier to find out who she was than just having Santana's old pictures to go after. She must have some connections to the fashion industry, or else she wouldn't have been on the billboard or at the fashion show in Amsterdam.

Finding out who she was would be a piece of cake, Berry cake!

After finding out who this mysterious person is, they would try and book her for a shoot. Seeing that Santana was, well, Santana, that would also be an easy task.

Santana would do the rest of the work from there.

"Do you, Santana Lopez, have a crush on this woman?" Rachel couldn't help but mock her friend that walked around smiling like a teenager in love.

"What? No!" Santana exclaimed, shocked by her friends assumption. "I would never have a crush on someone! That's not how it goes down in the land of Santana. Hell no. A crush? That's stupid..." the Latina rambled on as she felt her cheeks heat up. Rachel let out a loud chuckle as she let the question go, instead she asked what food they should eat for dinner.

XXXX

"Hi. Is this Kurt Hummel?" as soon as the two women got home they decided to start finding out who this blonde woman was, well, it was mostly Santana deciding since she couldn't wait any longer, three months was enough.

"Yes. This is Kurt Hummel. Who am I speaking to?" the man on the other side of the line replied, sounding very business-like.

"Great! I'm Rachel Berry and I'm looking for..." she got interrupted by the man who let out a squeal (was it a man? She couldn't tell anymore, it was such a high pitched note, probably a high F...). "Are you okay? Hello?" it suddenly hit her that the man had actually squealed, so it must have been a reason to it as well.

"Oh. Sorry. Yeah, I'm fine. I just got a little excited, that's all" the man tried to calm down, but his excitement could be heard clearly through his wavering voice.

"Do you want me to call back later?" this sentence received an evil glare from the Latina who stood next to her and didn't want to wait, no, couldn't wait any longer.

"No, no. It's fine. I was just wondering. You don't happen to be the one Rachel Berry who sang in Wicked down at the McKinley Theatre in New York a few years ago?" the man spoke in one, exciting, breath and this had Rachel squeal in a high F.

"What? What is it?" Santana asked the shorter brunette as she had to cover her ears. She only received a push away from the telephone as she tried to get closer to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"Ehum. Sorry. Yes, this is me. The Rachel Berry who starred in the amazing version of Wicked two years and four months ago, down at the McKinley Theatre, yes." Santana couldn't help but let out a snort and shake her head as she realized what the squeal was all about. Rachel had been recognized as a performer.

"This is such an honor! I'm a big fan. Your version of 'Defying Gravity' had me in tears and it still gives me shivers thinking about it." Rachel was ecstatic by this conversation. Never in her life had she received such recognition from someone she didn't know, nor had met before.

Rachel decided to make the conversation a little more private and pushed herself past Santana in to her own part of the duplex, something that received a 'hey' and 'what do you think you are doing' from the Latina who was left dumbstruck .

Forty minutes later the shorter brunette came out from her room, beaming even more than she had forty minutes earlier when Santana had last seen her.

"So? How did it go?" Santana asked as she put down a plate with a sandwich on for Rachel who just sat down by the dinner table.

"He recognized me! I'm so excited! Things are looking up for me!" Santana shook her head once again and couldn't believe this person that she lived with.

"Not that, Barbra." the Latina just glared in disbelief at her roommate, she couldn't believe that she didn't ask about the blonde.

"I will take that as a compliment, thank you" Rachel looked at Santana with a smirk. She knew well enough what it was that Santana wanted to know. She took the sandwich and walked out of the dining room.

When she was by the door frame she turned around and said "Oh, and I got you a meeting with Quinn in two days. Apparently she works behind the scenes and won't be seen in the actual television show. Weird, since she was on the billboard, but I guess it makes sense since you met her backstage as a crew member."

For the second time in the past hour a squeal was heard in the Lopez-Berry residence. This time it wasn't an F, but close enough.

The two days until the meeting with Quinn passed slowly, but Santana tried to keep herself busy with work to make the time pass. However, she did have problem concentrating and her thoughts, more than often, flew away to a certain blonde.

She tried to remember how her voice sounded in the morning, but the memory was beginning to feel distant.

XXXX

Santana had dressed up in her most casual, but still fabulous, clothes. A purple dress with a little vest on top, it showed enough of her skin.

She double checked so she hadn't forgotten anything, keys, camera, cards.

Before she went out to meet the blonde, she even gave Rachel a hug and whispered a 'thank you'.

The shorter brunette couldn't help but smile at her friend who seemed happy for the first time in a very long time, maybe even more happy than she had ever seen her.

Rachel had set up the meeting in a local art gallery where Santana currently had her work showing. It was a great place to meet during the day since it wouldn't be very crowded around lunchtime.

As she got closer she saw a blonde woman looking directly at her first ever editorial for Valentina, the future-esque photos. Santana felt her own heartbeat race and her hands became sweaty, great to shake someone's hands now.

She could still only see her back, but she was sure this was her. But she did look a little shorter than she remembered her, but that might just have been the heels since the woman in front of her now wore flats. The fact that the blonde's hair was shorter didn't really hit her, everyone renewed their looks in this industry anyway.

"Quinn?" the Latina was only standing a few feet away from the blonde who was still looking at the same canvas as she had when she first spotted her in the room.

"Yes?" the blonde turned around to face the brunette as both their jaws dropped at the exact same time.

XXXX

"Rachel! Man hands! Hobbit! Berry!" Santana was mad, really mad. Furious even. Her blood was pumping through her veins, faster than light moved in air. "Where the hell are you, Berry?" she ran around the house looking for the woman.

"Santana? Are you home already?" the shorter brunette was peeking out through her bathroom, only spotted in a towel, surprised to see her roommate home already.

"Did you really have to do that? Real smooth, you." Rachel could tell that the meeting didn't go as planned.

"What did I do?" she really had no idea what she had done to upset Santana enough to almost make her go into Snix mode, but whatever it was, it scared her.

"Oh, don't play innocent in this. I knew this is what you planned." Santana's eyes bore into Rachel's as they now stood face to face to each other.

"Really Santana. I have no idea what you're talking about..."

"Oh, yeah right. Quinn? Really smooth to bring her into all of this. You knew how excited I was but you had to fucking ruin it by pranking me." Rachel looked stunned. What on Earth was the Latina talking about.

"I thought you wanted to meet Quinn, I mean, you made me search for her. Remember?" Rachel explained as Santana eyed her suspiciously. "Santana, are you high? Have someone drugged you? Your pupils looks a little dilated..." now the shorter brunette looked worried instead.

"You know what. Fuck you, Berry, and fuck Quinn Fabray." with that, the Latina rushed out of the room and locked herself into her studio to try and calm down with only herself and the camera. Quinn Fabray? She would never meet her blonde again. The thought made a single tear fall down, but soon more tears were flowing down her cheeks.

Left in the bathroom stood Rachel wondering what had went down just minutes ago. Quinn Fabray? Was Quinn in town? Obviously. Why wasn't she in Lima with Puck? Why had Santana met Quinn Fabray and not the one Quinn on the billboard? There must be another Quinn working on the same show.

She couldn't believe this enormous mistake, that was made all because of her. She should've double checked the information before letting her friend attend the meeting.

This was a big mess and maybe not as easy as she first thought it would be. She had to do something...

XXXX

To Santana's displeasure there was no other Quinn working on the same show as Quinn Fabray and she didn't want to sound too nosy and directly ask her after the other blonde.

Days passed. Weeks passed. Even months passed and it was almost a year since Santana had seen the billboard with the blonde on.

Sometimes she thought of the one night stand that she once had in Amsterdam, wondering what the other woman was up to. She knew it was a little bit creepy since they had only met once, but to her defense, she had never once thought this way about another person.

Instead of dealing with the thoughts, she had gone back to sleeping around, snapping at people, traveling around the world and doing her usual editorials that she assigned. She was on the verge of becoming more well-known for her reputation than for her work, nothing she was proud of. But she couldn't change, wouldn't change. This was who she was, for now.

Even though she still had the lingering feeling of missing out on something in life...

XXXX

It was a sunny autumn afternoon in October, a perfect day for a jog in Central Park. But the Lopez-Berry resident had decided to stay in and go out later to enjoy the night instead.

"Oh My God." Rachel let out a fit of laughter as she sat in Santana's living room watching television. "Santana! Come in here!"

"What is it, Berry?" Santana walked in to the living room, seeing the smaller woman laughing like a lunatic at the television show she was watching. Santana owned the biggest and most expensive television as possible, even though she rarely used it she let Rachel use it since her living room in the duplex was much smaller and didn't fit a big television screen.

"You're going to love this! It's that television show that Quinn was working on. It's hilarious!" she let out another fit of laughter and Santana could only look at her roommate with a weird expression. If she recalled correctly, wasn't Quinn working with a fashion documentary, not a comedy series? Santana decided that she at least could sit down for a while to see what her former best friend had been working on the past years.

"I'm Brittany S. Pierce. Not to be confused with Britney Spears." was heard from the television and Rachel let out a loud snort as she once again burst out laughing.

"Shit." she hadn't seen that face in over a year. On the screen in front of her was the blonde, her blue eyes gleaming and her smile beaming right at her through the television.

Santana had done her best to forget and repress the thoughts of a certain blonde for the past year. But here she sat in front of her television with a friend laughing hysterical at the girl that she had once been constantly dreaming about.

"She's brilliant!" Rachel said as she calmed herself down and wiped her eyes from tears that had formed as a result from all the laughing. She didn't notice her friends shocked expression. "I wonder if it's scripted" the shorter brunette continued as she sat back down to enjoy the rest of the show. Rachel was so into the show that she didn't even notice her friend sneaking out of the apartment.

Santana had decided to go for that jog since the weather allowed her to.

She needed the fresh air while the wheels inside her head began to turn. 'Brittany? Why did she tell me her name was Quinn? How the hell was it that no one I knew, knew who this woman was, she's obviously popular and famous already?' was just a few of the questions that circulated in the Latina's head as she increased the speed as she ran around in Central Park.

**A/N: **Told ya' it would be a slow beginning here. I can tell you though, that Britt-Britt will get her proper introduction in the next chapter, which will come really soon!


	4. Date Night

**A/N: ****I just wanted to give y'all a little "end of the weekend"-gift with this update. Two days in a row, whoa!**  
Thanks for the reviews and story alerts/favorites.  
It is a lot of build up, yeah, but it will hopefully be worth the wait when they finally meet.  
**I'm currently writing on chapter 6, so I guess you guys can expect the fifth chapter soon!****  
**  
**Some not so awesome revelations in this one? Oh...**

Still don't own Glee. Still blame all spelling/grammar mistakes on my foreign-ness.

**CHAPTER 4**

**A YEAR AGO**

Quinn Fabray and Brittany Pierce are both in their early twenties and have recently moved to New York together.  
Four months ago they had met each other at a party through a friend and colleague in common and after realizing that they would be working on the same project they soon decided to hit it off and move to an apartment in New York together. It was a risky decision, since they didn't know each other or knew how well they would work together, but they both thought it would be a great idea to get to know each other as time went by. And as time did go by, they realized that it actually had been a great decision.  
The two blonde's had come from two entirely different families. Quinn hailing from a strict Christian family, growing up in Ohio and staying there up until her move to New York, afraid that her father might cut her off completely if she would leave them to try and pursue her own career.  
Brittany came from a more free spirited family who usually moved around from place to place, Europe to Africa and every other continent. She even got to stay in Antarctica for a few months to study the Emperor Penguins behavior, something Brittany found very fascinating. Brittany's parents usually let her do whatever she wanted, as long as it didn't harm her or any other person, or living spirit. It was something Brittany could live up to with ease, since she never wanted to hurt anyone or anything.  
In short, Quinn's family put their priorities on pleasing God while Brittany's family put their priorities on their daughter.

XXXX

"Quinn. Quinnie! Wake up!" Brittany told her sleeping friend as she stood a few feet away from the bed.

"Mhm... Uh-huh..." the sleeping blonde groaned as she kept her eyes closed and hugged the pillow closer.

"Quinn!" she repeated a little louder as she nudged her roommate who now rolled over and opened her eyes to look at the other blonde.

"Britt. What time is it?" Quinn asked barely audible with half open eyelids.

"Well. It could be 6.40. But I guess it could also be 8.30." Brittany said as she confusedly looked down on her new wristwatch.

"Why do you even have a watch if you don't even know how to check what time it is? Here, let me see." Quinn said as she reached for Brittany's arm, who only stood a few feet away.

"Britt!" the shorter blonde exclaimed, suddenly wide awake, as she saw what time it was. "It's already 8.30! I told you to wake me up at 7AM! We're running late! Both of us!" she continued as she jumped out of bed and ran over to her walk-in closet.

"And I told you I couldn't read a watch" the taller blonde looked down dejected with a small pout, she had never learnt what the bigger and smaller hand showed on the small arm piece. Suddenly she realized what her newly found friend had said.

"Wait. We're running? I thought we would take a cab. We're in New York, after all."

"You are confusing me. We need to get going soon. Go and get ready."

When Quinn had first been introduced to the taller blonde she had thought that her innocence and almost childlike nature was an act to survive the business by getting people help her with everything.  
Quinn had always wondered how it was possible for a woman with the personality of Brittany, to have endured in the business for such a long time. The industry was known for its unkindness, fakers and people having crude ways of making it, it was not always very honest and Brittany was the most honest person she had ever met. Brittany had been in the industry for longer than herself, even though Quinn was a few years older than her current roommate.  
But as Quinn got to know Brittany, she figured that the innocence was actually who she was and that people found her, not only beautiful and captivating, but fun, kind and humble, she was a breath of fresh air that people in the industry appreciated and looked after, protected even.  
Sometimes she wanted to tell her roommate how stupid and weird she was, but she knew that she could never do that to her, she knew how sad the other blonde would get if others told her that she was stupid. Sometimes Brittany seemed to be living in a fairy tale, she was too kind for her own good, maybe even naive.

XXXX

It was the first day on set to shoot for the new television show that the both blondes would work on the upcoming months. It wouldn't air until the next autumn, but the promotional shots were already taken and they even had a billboard up on Times Square to promote the process of the shooting.  
The concept was to document the life of ten people working in the fashion industry, mostly models, but also photographers, editors and designers. The goal was to show the general audience how it really worked behind the scenes. Not much was scripted, but everyone had gotten lists of what they weren't allowed to say under no circumstances or do while the camera was rolling.  
Quinn was the production coordinator, organizing and making sure that the crew really did what they were supposed to be doing on set, while Brittany was actually a part of the cast.

Today's filming would take place in a big television studio, set up with clothing racks and comfortable armchairs painted in gold, it was supposed to look like a talk show setting, but more like in an atelier environment.

"Hey baby!" a male voice was heard from behind as the two blonde roommates were discussing today's filming schedule, which would be an interview day to introduce everyone in the cast.

"Ahh, boo! What are you doing here?" Brittany turned around and leapt forward to wrap her arms around the man who was holding his arms wide open for her.

"Hey! Can't I see my girlfriend on her first day of work?" he said teasingly. "And I actually work here too, remember?" he said in a serious tone, unaware of his girlfriend flinching by his words. Yes, he was also a part of the cast. Yes, she knew that.

"Yeah, of course!" Brittany put on a smile, even though she didn't like being treated as if she didn't understand anything.

"Hey Quinn!" he said, faking a smile towards the other blonde.

"Arthur." she nodded towards the man. She wasn't very keen on him after hearing the way he always spoke and acted towards Britt, she had heard some not so great stories about him and his adventures too. She didn't like the way he always acted towards others, mostly women, as if he owned them. But she tried to keep herself together for the sake of her roommate who seemed to be content with him.

Artie and Brittany have had an on/off relationship for the past two years.  
She was beginning to feel like this wasn't it, but she kept going, hoping to maybe be able to change his ways in treating women. She really wanted to see and find the good things in the man.  
But Brittany still loved the shorter man, even though he always seemed to become distracted by other women, even in her presence.  
Still, he was an amazing sweet-talker and always got back to the blonde, making it look like it was all her fault, who in the end would quickly apologize for not pleasing him.  
He found her naive and stupid, but wouldn't tell that straight to her face, especially if he wanted to keep her, and Brittany was definitely a keeper. She was hot, successful, great in bed, forgiving... everything he could ever ask for in a woman, everything he needed in a woman.  
At the same time, Artie knew that when Brittany was committed, she would never break it, she was too kind, she would never consider to hurt anyone, even if she was hurting herself.  
"I am so much better than you all!" a shrill voice was heard through the studio and the two blondes looked at each other knowingly as they burst out giggling while Artie just stood next to them, smiling, as he tried to search for the face who had just acclaimed herself to be better than everyone else. When he found the woman he was looking for, he smirked at himself. He didn't notice Quinn's evil glare, but Brittany did.

XXXX

The days on set continued, Brittany preferred the days in the studio over the days she had a film team following her. She found it annoying having someone following her around like a little tail... even though she liked animals with tails, didn't mean she would look good with one.  
Sometimes she wondered why her agency had recommended her for this, and why she had accepted it in the first place. But she knew well enough why she had accepted it when she got that phone call from the production company a few months prior.  
People might think that she is stupid, but she knew well enough that this could be her big break as a model. Not to forget mentioning that she would be working and being able to keep an eye on her boyfriend, and it would all lead to new friendships that would probably last forever, like her friendship with Quinn. She couldn't say no to that offer.

XXXX

"Britt!"

"Yeah, Quinn?"

"Want to be my date for this event tonight?" the shorter blonde said as she showed an email for her roommate.

"Uhm, date? I'm flattered, but I thought it was obvious that I'm 'on' with Artie now?" she said, arching her eyebrow which caused the shorter blonde to smirk.

"You're not really my type..." Brittany held her hand over her heart, trying to look offended, until they both burst out laughing.

"To rephrase the question." she said a little calmer. "Would you like to join me for this grand opening tonight? Please be my plus one!" she begged as she showed the email again.

"Well..." Brittany looked like she was considering it. "Sure!" she exclaimed and hugged her friend. "But you need to help me pick my outfit!"

Two hours later and they were both ready to rock the boat, literally.

The new exclusive fashion store was located on a yacht docked in the Hudson River, one of the reasons to why Quinn was really excited for the grand opening, she loved being on the water. Even though the river reminded her of her high school boyfriend, which made her cringe.

When they got to the enormous boat they were met with a red carpet rolled out, canapés and champagne being offered by men dressed up like sailors, could it get any better?

Brittany found their small hats very adorable and told Quinn that she wanted one as well. Brittany walked around tasting all kinds of canapés, not really caring for the store. Her stomach was churning as she wondered why the canapés sat on toothpicks and why they were so small and still so very tasty.

Meanwhile, Quinn was lost in her own world, looking stunned as she looked through the different pieces of garments being sold. She touched the fabrics and looked closely at the sewing work. The patterns were detailed and absolutely gorgeous.

Apparently the shop would change themes every week, making the items highly exclusive and hard to get after the week was over. It was an interesting and very smart concept. This week it was cars. Interesting first week, seeing as they were on a boat. One could've only assumed that they would've gone for something more... fishy?

She was broken out of her trance as she heard two voices that she recognized.

"Berry. What the hell are we doing here?"

"You need to be seen at these kind of events. You don't need anymore headlines about you being drunk and stripping and dancing on tables in nightclubs. And I can certainly survive without seeing your naked frame on my computer screen again anytime soon." the woman said in a hushed voice.

"Yeah, sure. I know you love it." the Latina winked.

"What are you two lovebirds whispering about?" Quinn was surprised that she had opened her mouth, but it was too late to regret that now.

"Fabray. Nice to see you here." the Latina muttered sarcastically as she saw who had approached them.

"I see that you're being your usual bitter self, Santana." she said looking at her former friend. "Nice to see you Rachel, you look amazing." She continued as she eyed the shorter brunette for the first time in years. Quinn thought that she had matured well.

"Thank you. Lovely to see you here Quinn!" she said as she hugged the blonde. "Santana and I were just talking about how much we love these kind of events. Right, Santana?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever." Santana said as she looked at a shirt with some muscle car print on.

"She's definitely her usual self, isn't she?" Quinn asked, returning her attention back to Rachel.

"Yeah, I guess. I thought she had changed for a while..."

"Changed? Santana Lopez? Riiiight." Quinn said jokingly, which caused Rachel to giggle.

"I stand right here, you know." Santana glared back at the two women standing a few feet away, until she turned around to look at the other clothes in the store, which looked surprisingly good.

"So, Santana told me about your last encounter, a few months ago."

"Well, it was very awkward. I should have known that the meeting was with her when Kurt told me that a photographer named Santana wanted to meet me."

"Mhm, Kurt Hummel?"

"You know him?" Quinn asked, looking surprised.

"No. I only remember him from our conversation about the meeting." Rachel smiled as she remembered the praise she had gotten from the man. "Well, it's a very nice coincidence to see you here tonight!"

"Yeah, you too Rachel." Quinn smiled. She didn't seem to be able to not smile while looking at the brunette.

Quinn and Rachel spoke to each other as if they had been friends for years.

But just like Santana, Quinn had only befriended Rachel in senior year, a short-lived friendship since they ultimately lost contact when the brunette moved away from Lima.

One of the few reasons to why Quinn didn't become friends with the brunette before senior year was mostly because she had stolen her boyfriend, Finn Hudson. They had been the school's power couple, the head cheerleader and the star quarterback, but Rachel had ruined it.

Quinn had quickly realized that she was better off without him anyway, but she couldn't just forgive the two, so she kept her mean stance towards her. But as their last year together crept closer, she couldn't hold the grudge towards Rachel anymore.

"Are you here alone?" Rachel didn't know why, but she was hoping to get a 'yes' as an answer.

"No." Quinn saw that Rachel looked a bit disappointed, but why? "I'm here with a friend."

"Oh, okay." an uncomfortable silence settled upon the two, something that Quinn wasn't used to while being around Rachel who usually spoke without breathing.

"Well..." Rachel opened her mouth first, but soon the silence broke out between them once again.

"What are you working with nowadays?" they said in unison. "Oh." they said in unison again. The both burst out laughing, receiving a few glares from the people around them who wanted to do their shopping in peace. Maybe it was the champagne, maybe it was the fact that they had finally met after so many years.

"You start."

"Well. I assume that you have already heard the rumors going around?" the blonde shook her head. "Okay. Well. Don't laugh now."

"Can't promise anything." Quinn said teasingly.

"I work as Santana's assistant." this earned a snort from the blonde, who also received a slap on the arm from Rachel. "Hey, you promised!"

"No. I don't do promises! What's the rumors about? You and her being an item?" The silence spoke for itself as Quinn put two and two together as she doubled over due to all of the laughing.

"Yeah, yeah. Very funny." Rachel said sarcastically as she smiled brightly at her old friend. "So, how about you. What are you working with?"

"I moved up here a few months ago to work with a new television show. No more Lima loser!" she sang out the last words until she continued, "It's a documentary series about how the fashion industry works. You basically get to follow ten people around, who work with different areas of the fashion industry."

"That sounds very interesting. I guess I have to congratulate you then. I'm sure it will be a great success!" that was the Rachel that Quinn remembered. "Maybe you could have Santana in it!" Rachel joked.

"Yeah, I don't think she would want to be a part of something that I work with." Quinn shrugged.

"That's probably accurate." Santana said as she got closer.

"I should probably get going. I don't know where my friend went."

"Yes, you should go and look for her. Never know what could have happened on this enormous yacht. Maybe she fell off the railing!" Rachel said jokingly.

"You're right. She might have fallen into the water. I'm not even sure that she can swim." Quinn said in a serious tone with a sudden change in demeanor.

"Oooookay." Santana said.

"Well, it was lovely to meet you Quinn. I hope to see you again soon, now when we know for sure that you will be in town for a while, right?"

"Definitely. And great seeing you too Rachel." she beamed as she looked straight into Rachel's eyes. "You too, Santana." turning her head slightly to the right, catching the nod that the Latina offered as a 'bye'.

"Well. That sucked." Quinn heard Santana say in a sarcastic tone as she walked away, not knowing why she smiled to herself.

XXXX

After ten minutes of running around the yacht looking for Brittany, she really thought that her friend might have fallen down the railing and into the water, not knowing how to swim.  
When she was about to call over a security guy she saw a glimpse of blonde hair.

"Britt!" she exclaimed as she saw her roommate looking at the same shirt that Santana had been looking at earlier.

"Cheezus. Don't scare me like that!"

"Where have you been? I was worried."

"You shouldn't worry so much. I'm a grown up woman. And for your information, I was checking out the other rooms. Have you seen them?" Quinn shook her head. "The question is. Where have you been? Looking a little flushed, huh?" Brittany teased her friend.

"What?" She exclaimed, realizing that she had said that a bit louder than she planned. "Uhm. I do?" she said a little calmer, touching her own cheeks.

"Nah, not really. Just teasing with you. Why? Did you meet someone?" the taller blonde said, wiggling her eyebrows, suddenly a bit more curious.

"Well," she paused. "I met two friends from high school."

"Oh, someone I know?" Brittany winked, she already knew that she probably wouldn't know any of her roommates former high school mates.

"I don't think so. You might have heard of them though. Rachel Berry and Santana Lopez?" Quinn looked at her friend as her eyes turned big like saucers. "What? Britt, are you alright?"

"Is Santana Lopez here?" she said almost a bit too excitedly as her face lit up, looking around in the store. To her disappointment, she did not see the Latina woman anywhere near them.

"I don't know if she's still here. They might have left already." she had no idea what was going on with her friend. "Are you sure that you're okay, Britt?" she continued, concerned over her friend's sudden change in demeanor.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired. I think we should go home, it's getting late." she yawned out in between the last two words.

"Sure. But first, I'm going to get you one of those sailor hats that you wanted!"

XXXX

"Hey Britt. I was just wondering about last week?"

"What about last week?"

"When I said that I met Santana Lopez and Rachel Berry..." she paused.

"Yes?" Brittany said carefully.

"Do you know either of them?" Quinn asked, curiosity lacing her voice.

"Who?"

"Santana Lopez or Rachel Berry, of course?"

"Oh..."

"Do you?" Quinn was beyond curious.

"Well. I thought that you already knew that I'm a big fan of Santana..." she looked down as she confessed this for her roommate.

"Hey." this caused Brittany to look up at her. "Apparently not." she winked. "I might have been able to introduce you if I knew that you liked her!" this caused Brittany to blush.

"Well, actually, I have already met her." The blue-eyed blonde sighed.

**A/N: Oh. Unexpected confession in the end, huh? Nah.  
But Bartie, what is thissss...**


	5. Exhaustion

**A/N: Thanks for le reviews/alerts/favorites! Mucho love and appreciation!  
If anyone of you got a tumblr and want to chat, leave me a message and I'll send you a message with my "personal" tumblr! (heads up: I love my Hemo and reblog her... a loooot!)**

**vikstar80:**I knooow, I'm sorry for bringing in some Bartie! I kind of cringe while I write it too, haha! Guess I just wanted an excuse for some Artie bashing. (;

**CHAPTER 5**

"You did what?" Quinn roared. She tried to always stay calm and hide her feelings inside, she was pretty good at it. But right now, that was not an option. Quinn Fabray was mad. Perhaps she had been too nice towards Brittany, she didn't even know her that well, well, she did know pretty much about her and how she worked. But this, this was completely unexpected, and beyond her belief. She never thought that her friend would do this towards her.

"I'm really sorry Quinn." her eyes met the furious blonde in front of her. "I didn't know that you knew her." she mumbled as she looked down, her hands in her lap suddenly a lot more interesting than the eyes staring right at her.

"Well, now you know." she replied bitterly. "What were you thinking? Did you even think? I don't really think you did." Quinn rambled on and Brittany knew that this was the first time that Quinn had really been upset with her.

"I didn't... I didn't think that I would ever see her again." Brittany stuttered out the first thing she could think of. She didn't hate much, but lying was one thing she really hated, especially when she did it towards her friends. She knew that there was a chance that she would meet Santana again, they were in the same industry after all.

"Sometimes you're so damn stupid Britt." Quinn said a little calmer, but she didn't catch her own slip in time before realizing what she had just said. Her own eyes getting wide as she looked down at her roommate who sat in front of her, still having her eyes down.

"Ouch," the taller blonde said sarcastically, obviously hurt by the words. "I guess I deserved that one." her lip trembling as she tried to hold back tears.

"I'm sorry Britt, I didn't mean..."

"No, Quinn. You did mean it. But I'm not stupid." her teary gaze finally met Quinn's, who looked more angry at herself than furious at her friend. "I know what people are saying." she paused. "And you know what. I was hoping to meet Santana again one day, I was hoping that she would come and look for me, to find out about my true identity. But she never did." tears were slowly streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh, Britt. I'm sorry." Quinn said as she took a step closer to wrap her arms around the crying woman. She didn't only know how the blonde's brain worked, but she also knew how the brunette's brain worked. But that's when it hit her. It was her, Brittany, that Santana thought she would meet that day at the art gallery. It was Brittany, not herself. She finally put the pieces together. Brittany had introduced herself as Quinn, so Santana thought that 'Quinn' was actually Brittany. Complicated. But would she tell her roommate that Santana had been looking for her? Did her former best friend really deserve someone as kind and loving as Brittany? Besides, Brittany had Artie already, she may not like the man, but she didn't ruin others relationships...

"I'm sorry for using your name, Quinn." Brittany murmured as she snuggled closer to the smaller blonde. "It won't happen again, I promise."

"Do you want me to call Artie for you?"

"Well, I don't think that would be a good idea."

"Why? Did you have a fight again?" Quinn prepared herself for getting furious once again, however, not on her roommate this time.

"Yeah, I kind of caught him... you know... doing it ... with Sugar." Quinn just shook her head at the revelation, not very surprised though. Brittany didn't seem too mad either, this wasn't the reason behind her streaming tears either. Saying that she should be used to his ways was horrible, but probably a bit true.

"I knew it. That hideous bi..." she stopped herself before saying something she might regret later, she was still a good Christian. "Think she can do whatever she want since her daddy's rich..."

"Don't say that about her. I really like her. She's nice and really fun to be around, when she's not blaming everything she says on her self-diagnosed Aspergers."

"I know she is, but she still let it happen." she said with a disappointed look. "She's so young too, that pervert..." a sudden anger and disgust lacing her voice. Quinn shivered just thinking of the man. She was disgusted by his manners and his disrespect towards women, his way of brainwashing, he's just an ugly player. "He really must be something special since you're always staying with him, even after what he has done towards you."

"You know I can't just leave him..."

"You could do so much better, you know. Don't you see..." Quinn interrupted.

"Quinn, I really don't want to fight with you again. It's not any of your business anyway." Brittany said, clearly exhausted from their little fight.

"I'm sorry. You're right, it's not any of my business. But don't come to me crying about it later." Quinn said jokingly as she poked her friends on the ribs, trying to get both of them to feel better.

"Thanks." Brittany forced out a small smile to show that she really appreciated her friend, before she stood up to walk out of the room.

"Hey!" the taller blonde stopped in her tracks and turned around. "Should I call Santana for you? Maybe you two can, you know..." Quinn winked and couldn't help but laugh as Brittany's face turned red like a tomato. "I can't believe you did it with her though. Of all people..." Quinn shook her head in disbelief.

"She would've tried to find me if she wanted to see me again." Quinn just stood there, not really knowing what to say, should she tell her? If she kept this away from Brittany... and from Santana... no, she had to tell them. She didn't even want to imagine how mad Santana would get if she didn't tell...

"But..."

"Quinn." she said warningly. "No 'buts'!" she said as she turned away again, ready to walk to her room.

"But, but... what if I want 'butts'?" Quinn tried to joke without success. Brittany giggled but continued to just walk away, waving off her friend.

"Okay, okay. I will let that go for now! But just you wait until you'll run into her!" was heard a few minutes later from Quinn who shouted from the kitchen, Brittany shook her head at her friend's antics, a smile grazing her lips as she thought of meeting the Latina again.

**XXXX**

It had been six long months of on and off filming and it was almost time to wrap it all up. The show needed a lot of different footage, fashion shows, interviews, studios, ateliers, parties, casual days off... everything.

For Brittany, the first two months were a piece of cake, she did was she was told, had the film team following her, did interviews. The third and fourth got a bit more complicated since she had to communicate with Artie during the days that were scheduled for the studio with the whole cast. They had never been 'off' for more than a few weeks in the past, but she found a certain relief in it too, she didn't need him, she felt happier without him, more confident in what she said. The fifth month, was probably the worst, at least if you would ask Quinn.

During the fifth month, Brittany went back to her old habits.

Artie was not stupid, he knew that Sugar would most likely break if off as soon as the filming would wrap up. He needed Brittany back, so he took her back, and she let him take her back. Brittany forgave him for what he had done, while Quinn could only stand from the side as she saw her friend crumble down and lose her new-found confidence.

Brittany knew that Artie was still seeing Sugar, everyone knew that. But what could she do about it? Nothing.

The sixth month was nothing special. It was almost over and everyone felt a certain sadness, but also relief since they would get a few weeks off before the heavy promotion would begin, prior to the air date in October, which was still a few months away.

The cast had had their ups and downs during the past months, but they had all become good friends, some even more than friends, like Artie and Sugar.

Except for Quinn, Brittany had found a good friend in Sam Evans, she knew that they would keep contact even when they were done filming.

Sam was expected to become the most popular out of the cast when the show would finally air.

He had big, pouty lips and a smile that would have the young girls yearning and their mothers to wish he was their son in law, he was a great guy, though, he didn't always see that himself.

They were the same age, both nerdy and a bit quirky. They both enjoyed comic books, Star Wars and video games, with an athletic background.

Sam being a former football player and synchronized swimmer, Brittany still enjoying dancing on her free time. Brittany usually did the runways, while Sam often got editorials. Sam being a bit self-concious about his body, while Brittany loved her own body. It was their similarities and their differences that spoke for them being meant to become good friends from the start.

However, their friendship was something that annoyed Artie, he didn't approve at all, he wanted Brittany all for herself.

So that was what the last few weeks of filming consisted of. Fights.

The rest of the cast knew better than to interfere between Artie and Brittany unless it would start getting physical, and luckily it hadn't come to that point, at least not yet.

It was not uncommon to hear the two fighting in Brittany's dressing room, trying to avoid the prying eyes and gossipers.

But people still heard through the thin walls, and people still talked. But that didn't stop Brittany, who continued to be with Artie.

**XXXX**

They were in the middle of promotion. All of them were used to the press by now, after months of interviews, smaller and bigger one's. The show had just begun to air on national television and the first three episodes had been a huge success within the American audience, with close to 10 million viewers each episode. People overseas where already anticipated to hear about airing dates for their local channels.

However, today was their first panel interview. The whole cast and creators would be there to answer questions and many important journalists, industry people and fans would be in the attendance to ask questions, it was a big gathering to let the audience and press acquaint themselves with the cast. It would also air live on television as a special episode That's why it was extra important for everyone to stay calm and behave properly. This was their first live broadcast.

The location was an old theatre, the interior was themed in gold and red, it almost looked regally.

The crowd chatted animatedly in their seats as they patiently waited for the cast to enter the stage and for the interview to begin.

When the cast walked out they were met by applause and wolf-whistles, they couldn't do anything but smile and be grateful in that moment.

"First question!" Kurt Hummel, announced to the audience. He was responsible for all public relations regarding the show. "Yes, sir on the fifth row in the flower shirt."

"Thank you. I got a question for Al Motta, funder for the show." the man on the fifth row began. "How did you come in contact with the production? I mean, I assume that it isn't based on your vision even though you have paid for the production."

"No, it's not my concept. It was my Super Nova over there, Sugar..." the audience turned their eyes towards Sugar as he continued, "well, Sugar wanted to be in a television show. So I thought I'd help her out by funding this idea here, it's all non-profit for me. But I'd do anything for my Super Nova." he said as he smiled. The audience looked in shock at the man. Did he just say that he bought his daughter a spot in the cast? Well, nothing should be surprising in the entertainment business anymore.

The one who looked most shocked, and slightly angry, was Kurt. Al's answer may have been the truth, and obvious to some people, but it was not supposed to be out there officially. But it was too late now, he had to take care of that later.

"Next question!" Kurt announced. "Ma'am in the front row."

"Hey, thank you. My name is Mercedes Jones and I work for Valentina Magazine. I got a question for the whole cast." the cast put on their best smiles for the woman in the front row, everyone knew that Valentina was the most important fashion magazine in the world, they had to make a good impression. "How would y'all describe each other with one word each?"

The cast immediately began to discuss it for everyone to hear. It was an interesting discussion, some people were harder to figure out since they couldn't really-really be honest with the press.

"That over there is Teen Jesus! But that's two words..." Brittany said as she pointed towards Joe Hart, he was, along with Sugar, the youngest member out of the cast, still in his teens. He had long, brown, dreaded hair and showed off his tattooed chest. He also worked as a model.

"Girl, you're crazy!" the journalist called Mercedes shouted with a laugh. This had the whole cast smiling wider. It was not often journalists would be that daring, to interrupt in the middle of interviews, but it showed that this woman was not afraid of anything.

"Brittany can only be described as the 'unicorn.' Right guys?" Sam said as he flashed Mercedes one of his infamous smiles, everyone chimed in with 'yes' and 'definitely'. Brittany grinned, she was more than happy with being described as the unicorn, it was her all time favorite animal.

The rest of the cast was described with words like "Mr. Always-late-for-dress-rehearsal", "princess", "hip sway", "bossy", "blur", "baby" and "trouty mouth". It was a joke to them, it was what they called each other on set. No harm done.

Finally they had only one man down to give a word, it was the most challenging one. They all knew what they wanted to call him. "Sexist", "player", "douche", they really didn't have anything nice to say about him. But they also knew that they couldn't use any of those words in front of the press, even though his douche side was often seen on the show.

"Cock... yyyyy... cocky!" the woman who got described with the word "blur" was the first one to open her mouth, she was a photographer who usually said whatever she wanted, but this time she knew that she couldn't throw out whichever word that she would've liked, it could've meant possible trouble for her own sake too, something she couldn't jeopardize. But she could stutter out a little joke.

"Maybe 'Sugar Daddy'?" the man called "Hip Sway" chuckled out. This caused the whole cast and crew to burst out laughing, even Brittany and Sugar laughed. Even Kurt, who was supposed to not tolerate those kind of answers, smiled. Artie looked down, ashamed, not wanting to see the audience's reaction, hoping that they wouldn't understand the joke. But the audience sat clueless, a few of them whispered to each other, some smiled, but most of them was missing the obvious joke in front of them.

"Dang, they should've let me be a part of the cast! Next season!" Mercedes said as she raised from her seat to point towards the producers. "You guys seem like a killer gang! I hope to see more of you soon!" the journalist beamed. "Thanks for answering my question." she said as she sat down again.

Kurt was happy to be able to breathe out as the panel continued with questions that couldn't be answered in a way that could harm the television show in the future. Not all PR is good PR. The cast and producers did a great job in answering the questions, being their usual selves, holding back when needed.

It was easy to tell who were the crowd pleasers among the cast, since they got the most questions.

As expected, Sam was the most popular from the cast with his beautiful look and way to handle the questions. Brittany almost seemed as popular, with her innocent charisma, witty jokes and playful charm.

"Hiiiii, I'm Julieeeee" the teenaged girl who got the word said in a sweet tone, dragging out each words. "This one's for Sam and Brittany." both of them smiled widely at the girl in front of them. "I'm a huge fan of you two, you're so hot together!" it was obvious that this girl wasn't a professional, but a fan who had won a ticket for the panel. "Well, did you know that people think, and want you two, to date? We call you 'Bram'! That's all I wanted to say, thank you for letting me be here today!"

Kurt's first thought was "uh-oh" as his eyes quickly took a glance at Artie, who looked relatively calm on the 'Artie-scale'.

"Britt, what do you say?" Sam smirked towards the girl seated next to him.

"What! You heard that, Sam? That's so cute! Bram! Almost as adorable as when I saw a tiger give a spring birth a few years ago. Those kittens were so cute!"

"Yeah, that's really flattering. Thank you for letting us know." he said calmly as he gave the young girl one of his best smiles, which nearly caused the young girl to pass out.

"Next questiiiiooon!" Kurt sang, wishing for something more serious this time.

"Hi, I have a question for Brittany." It was Brittany's fourth question directed towards her alone, she smiled brightly at the blonde man who had prepared a question for her. "First of all, I would like to say that you are absolutely stunning and not to forget mentioning, very funny."

"Thank you Mister. You're quite the charmer, huh?" Brittany winked as she took a sip from her water. The audience began to giggle at her antics. This earned a warning glance from Artie who sat across the room, however, Brittany missed it.

"Please, continue with your question sir." Kurt said from the side of the stage.

"Sorry. Yes, of course." the man said before clearing his throat. "Well, I was wondering if you have a dream collab? Fashion wise, work wise?" he smiled brightly as Brittany smiled back.

"Well, I don't know that much about experiments and stuff, I always used to blow stuff up in school, but..."

"I didn't mean it like that." the blonde journalist said, still smiling at Brittany who had thought that the man meant a 'cool lab'. "I mean, is there someone in the industry that you would like to work with?" he rephrased his question, hoping that the blonde would understand what he meant.

"Oh. I'm sorry. Well, of course." she replied coyly, the audience giggled at her again as Brittany looked a bit lost.

"Want to share any names or brands?"

"I guess I would love to work with a brand or designer who would have a really colorful collection." she said with a smile. "But there's actually a special person that I would love to work with one day. It's one of the most proficient photographers in the industry. I remember that I went to one of her exhibitions once, it showed parts from this amazing editorial shoot. It was this, science fiction inspired thing. I was speechless for days afterwards, lucky I only had to talk and not actually hold a speech." Brittany rambled on, smiling even wider as she thought of the photographer in question.

"This photographer that you seem so very fond of, it isn't Santana Lopez, is it?" the same blonde journalist continued.

"Of course it is! She's the best in the industry. Who wouldn't want to work with her?" Brittany shrugged at her own statement, she didn't know of anyone who wouldn't want to work with the Latina.

"Thank you!" Kurt said in an exhausted tone. "Last two questions now!" he finally announced, now in a more chirpy tone, the day was coming to an end and he could finally go home soon. This statement had most of the journalists raising their hands as the last two questions got answered and the cast and crew received yet another wave of applause as they thanked and bowed to the audience and walked off the stage.

Little did Brittany know, but a certain Latina had been watching the whole interview closely as she sat snuggled up alone in her living room couch... almost choking on her wine as she heard her name being mentioned by the blonde model.

**A/N: See what I did there? Brittany got to see her animals give a spring birth!**

**That line, from 3X15 is probably the most adorable thing ever, by the way.**


	6. Fashion

**A/N: Hey guys! How's everything? Good, I hope! Even under the circumstances that is the miserable world of Glee and Brittana. (We all should be used by now, huh?)**

**Soon the girls will finally(?) start to interact again, how many words ago was it again? I got a feeling that it might be a bit disappointing though...**

**Well, this chapter was so long (I haven't completely finished it either), but I decided to split it up in two parts instead!  
So here's the first part. I'm thinking that the next will be up soon enough though, so you won't need to wait too long for it!**

**vikstar80: Maybe I'll give Quinn a love interest! You got anyone in mind?**

**Anyone else got someone in mind for a possible love interest? A love triangle between Q and Brittana? (;**  
**Nah, that ain't gonna happen!**

**+ Thanks for the other reviews/alerts! Big heart!  
**

**ps. Still don't own Glee.**

**CHAPTER 6**

"Tonight on Fashion Lies Everywhere..."

"Santana! It's starting!"

"I'm coming!" Santana replied as she ran up the stairs, holding a big bowl in her hands. "Fuck." she sighed as she dropped it, she'd take care of that later. She continued to hurry into her living room where Rachel already sat, snuggled up with pillows and blankets.

"What happened to the popcorn?"

"I dropped them down the stairs."

"What are we goin..."

"Whatever. Shut up Berry, what did I miss?"

8 PM on Tuesdays had quickly turned into their new favorite time of the week. It meant watching their new favorite television show, Fashion Lies Everywhere, snuggled up in blankets with snacks and red wine.

Ever since Santana had seen the special episode with the panel interview she had become even more obsessed with the show, and a certain cast member.

She was just waiting and hoping for the blonde's agency to finally call her up for a photo shoot, but she had still heard nothing.

Rachel had quickly realized who the blonde on the show was, even though it took her a few episodes. It had almost been a year since Santana had last mentioned the "Amsterdam blonde", but she noticed her roommates dreamy look upon her face and switching mood as Santana either saw her or heard someone mention the blonde model, who along with nine others took over their television screen every Tuesday, and Sundays when they did midnight re-runs.

"Are you going to call her?"

"Who?" Santana took a quick glance to the left, then turned back all of her attention to the screen in front of her. She knew exactly who the shorter brunette was referring to, but she was not going to take that discussion now.

"You know who." Rachel said as she turned down the volume of the television.

"Hey! I'm watching this!" the Latina said as she tried to snatch the remote control that was held tightly in Rachel's grip. "You know what. Fine." Rachel relaxed with a satisfied grin, she would get her answer now. "No, I won't call her."

"What!" Rachel nearly fell as she jumped up from the couch, still snuggled up in her blanket. "You gotta... you spent weeks trying to find her, months even! Now when you have found her you're just going to sit here and look dreamily at her through that screen? I can't believe you, Santana Lopez." she said in total disbelief as she looked down on her friend who still had all of her attention on the silenced television that now showed some advertising for toothpaste, that apparently was great to use if you wanted to whitening your teeth, not that they needed that. "Santana!" the Latina just rolled her eyes. "Answer me now. Why did you..."

"For fuck sake Berry!" Santana raised her voice. "Drop it! She obviously didn't want me to find her since she didn't even give me her real name, no phone number, no address, nothing!" the Latina shouted as she felt her head start to ache and her surroundings to spin, even though she sat down. Rachel took a few deep breaths before she took a seat on the couch again. "Just drop it." Santana said in a barely audible whisper, more to herself than to Rachel, as she turned her head around, doing her best to hide the tears that had formed in her eyes and to quickly wipe them away with her sleeve. But Rachel didn't miss the watery eyes and the sad look on her friend's face.

"Can you please turn up the sound now. It's starting again." Santana said calmly after a few moments, glancing towards Rachel who didn't move, so she took the remote herself and turned up the audio while Rachel just sat on the couch with crossed arms and an expressionless look upon her face.

**XXXX**

Rachel had hid the card well in the drawer next to her bed. She found it a few months ago while following her weekly ritual of cleaning out her different purses and bags. She had considered taking it out earlier, but this was it, the time had finally come.

She was home alone that evening, so this was a great opportunity to take it out from its hideout without being interrupted by the fiery Latina. It was now or never.

The brunette looked down at the small business card and dialed the number that was printed on it.

"Hello? Who is this?" a nasal voice was heard through the phone.

"Quinn! It's Rachel, Rachel Berry!" she said as she nervously bit her lip.

"Oh, hi Rachel! I assume that you just found my business card. It took you a while, I'm that sneaky!" Quinn tried to joke through the phone. Comedy never being her strongest side.

"Uh, well..." Rachel began. "I actually found it the week after we met. I'm sorry for not calling you back until now. I just felt that there never was a good time."

"Oh." the blonde felt slightly disappointed, she left her card in the hopes of getting a call back sooner from the short brunette. But better late than never, right? "I'm really glad that you called now though!" Even though Rachel couldn't see the blonde through the phone, she could hear it in her voice that she was smiling on the other side.

The two women did some small talk for a few minutes, that quickly turned into thirty minutes... then an hour. Well, it had been months since their last encounter, which didn't give them much time to talk about what had happened the previous years, so they had a lot to catch up on. And well, when Rachel got the word she couldn't just shut up and be quiet, that's not how she worked.

"What's the reason behind your call? I assume that it wasn't just to catch up with an old high school friend?" Quinn asked curiously, she was smart. She had missed talking to the brunette on the other side of the line, even though she knew that there must have been some other reason behind the sudden call.

"Yes. I was actually calling to ask if you're friends with the cast of Fashion Lies Everywhere?"

"Well, friends... I guess I could call them friends, we've been working together for a while. Some closer than others. Why?" she might have an idea where this was going. She had pretty much been anticipating this call for months and not only because she was hoping that Rachel would want to catch up with an old friend.

"That's great! Do you happen to..." Rachel was cut short when the blonde cleared her throat.

"This don't happen to have something to do with Santana? Or a certain blonde?"

"How... how did you know?" Rachel stuttered out, surprised that Quinn seemed to know what this was about.

"You know my friend, who I went to the grand opening with? The one on the yacht, where we met..." Quinn began to explain. "Well, she happens to share an apartment with me and she happens to be Brittany, who's on the show."

Quinn continued to tell the whole story and explain everything she knew. Everything from her first encounter with Santana to what Brittany had told her about the name identity incident to Brittany being a big fan of Santana and to her dating Artie.

"I never get speechless, but this is... that's kind of romantic. They have been hoping to meet again for over a year." Rachel said dreamily.

"Yeah, just too bad that they haven't found each other yet."

"By themselves..." Rachel mumbled to herself.

"Uh-oh..." Quinn knew what this meant.

"I have an idea!" Rachel shouted, making Quinn jump up in surprise from the brunettes outburst through the phone.

Rachel's ideas rarely meant anything good. But as Rachel told Quinn about her so-called master plan, she couldn't help but believe that it could actually work, just so her roommate and former best friend could meet each other again, to discuss the past, maybe start over again. Maybe one thing would lead to the other.

They had to at least try the idea and see where it could possibly lead.

**XXXX**

"Santana!" Rachel was calling from downstairs. "You're booked to do a lingerie shoot next week. Up and coming brand, no Victoria's! I sent over a few images from their past collections, as well as the one you will be working with, look through them before Monday, shoot is on Tuesday! Don't let me remind you, I have already added it to your calendar!"

"Thanks Berry! I love me some lingerie shoots, it's been way too long!" the Latina shouted from upstairs. She had considered getting walkie-talkies, but what would be the fun in that? You can't annoy your neighbors by using walkie-talkies.

Honestly? Lingerie was not Santana's favorite kind of shoot. Sure, she loved to see hot women in sexy underwear, maybe get some of that later.

But no. To her, there was something more about photography than to just catch a woman in underwear. Put a woman on a couch, tell her to push up her chest a little and finish off by telling her to look confident and sexy, stare seductively right into the lens... That's how most of her lingerie shoots went, nothing out of the ordinary about that. Maybe she just needed to do a more artistic lingerie shoot for once.

"This is some kinky underwear right here." Santana laughed inwardly at her own joke. "This isn't even lingerie." she said to herself as she raised an eyebrow while scrolling through the file she got sent over from Rachel.

She didn't even know what the hell she was looking at. Forget about lace and satin, this looked like cotton. They were colorful, came in all kinds of models, hipsters, boyshorts, briefs, tangas and thongs. Different bras too, of course. They had different patterns printed on them like, candy and ice cream cones, cats and dogs, lipsticks and bottles of nail polish, and a bunch of different combinations... Imagine young girls panties, but for adults. But what woman would even buy this? Apparently some women, since the brand seemed to have last through at least two collections. But what woman would even consider designing something like this?

**XXXX**

The days passed like time was set in fast-forward, it soon became yet another Monday. Santana didn't forget about the underwear shoot that was set for the next day. How could she? She found it hilarious to begin with. Those innocent bras and panties on a good looking grown up woman, she didn't even know if she would survive the photo shoot without bursting out laughing, but she promised herself and Rachel to do her best, for the sake of the poor model who would wear the garments.

Either way, she would come well prepared to the studio the next day. An idea had struck her the moment she had seen the collection, she wanted to explore more with the innocence and childish themes, that's why she had ordered her friends to get some props to help build up a set looking like Alice in Wonderland meets Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The props were already at the studio and the set was supposed to be built up by her friends and former neighbors, Mike Chang and Tina Cohen-Chang. Mike worked as a professional dancer and had all the knowledge on how a good set would look from his experiences from music video shoots. Tina worked as an interior designer, so of course she knew what she was doing. Santana could just hope that they wouldn't spend all the time getting it on inside her beloved studio when they were supposed to work, but she did trust them with her life and she was sure that the set would be ready the next morning.

**XXXX**

Santana's studio wasn't enormous, but it was pretty big. It was the garage and basement of a small house, that she had bought not too long ago, that had turned into a studio. She already had her own studio in the apartment, but she needed to have something bigger as well. Previously she had rented a studio and got to use Valentina's in-house studio, but she wanted her own stuff and the possibility to use it whenever she felt the urge to use it, and a way to get away from everything.

Santana needed all the space she could get and to own the whole house was the perfect solution.

If she could, then she would live in that house, but she wouldn't survive in such a small place, it would be suffocating, it wasn't that big!

But it did have most things that she needed. The studio area, with different lighting systems, cranes and tripods, clothing racks, a computer and lounging area. It was renovated so three of the walls were painted in white, with one wall covered with mirrors, thus making it possible to use it as a dancing studio if you moved all the camera equipment to the sides, however, you had to be careful so the light wouldn't bounce on the mirrored wall. The renovated garage and basement had no windows that would let in any kind of sun, it was the perfect studio to have, with a multi-purpose too.

Beside the actual studio, there was a makeup and styling room, also with mirrored walls, that's where the models, makeup artists and stylists housed during and in between photo shoots. There was also a small library with whatever books you may want to read, the same room could also be used as an office or a painting atelier. She had two entertainment rooms, one with an expensive entertainment system, and one which was more of a relaxation room with a mini bar, a pool table and a few arcade games, that her friend Puck had helped her get. Of course she had to have a kitchenette and bedroom too, if she would work late, but the small bedroom only fit a single bed and a wardrobe. Rachel also had her own room at the back of the house where the sun shined through the glass windows making it the warmest place in the house when the sun was beaming, it was like a greenhouse where Rachel had her own plants, she was a vegan after all.

The small attic housed props that might be needed for different photo shoots, it was everything from umbrellas to chairs to fake food.

Most of the walls in the house were covered with different kinds of art, it was mostly Santana's photographs, but also paintings made by her friends, things she had gotten as gifts and even more mirrors.

It was like an art and entertainment house. She lent it out for her friends to use whenever she wasn't there, when they needed to get away or just wanted to use some of the stuff that she housed there, sometimes they all spent time there together. Everyone helped taking care of the house, cleaning and renovating when needed.

"Hi Santana," Santana's receptionist David greeted as he heard the door opening. "today's crew is here already. The makeup artist, manager, model and designer, I told them to wait in the studio." David Karofsky worked as the in-house receptionist whenever Santana was supposed to be working, it was him you called if you wanted to use the house, to see if Santana was booked to use it. He was an old friend of Santana's. They hadn't started out on the right sides with each other, but when Dave came out as gay, Santana took him under her wings as his wingwoman.

"Hi Dave," Santana greeted as she went to hug the larger man. "And thanks for letting me know, tell them know that I will be down there in a minute." she said as she walked towards the bathroom to freshen up before taking care of her work.

"Sure, I'll tell them!" he smiled and walked down the stairs to tell the four people who patiently waited for the well-known photographer.

**XXXX**

Santana hurried down the stairs to the studio, not wanting her guests to wait for her longer.

The first thing she noticed was the set that her friends had built up from scratch for her. She had to remind herself to call Mike and Tina to thank them and to offer them a few rounds or maybe catch up over dinner sometime soon. The set with all the props looked amazing, beyond her own expectations. The couple had, as always, done an exceptional job and this shoot would be golden... that's when she caught a glimpse of blonde hair, a woman sitting in the couch in the corner of the room, together with another woman and two men who flipped through some magazines. They hadn't noticed her presence yet, but Santana recognized some of them.

"Hooooly shit..." Santana mumbled quietly as she walked closer to greet the people. "Breathe Santana, breathe, just act cool. Just pretend that you don't know her, pretend that you don't know her..." suddenly became her new mantra as she mumbled the words to herself. She put up her best smile and prepared herself for going into business mode.

Her eyes only focusing at the blonde who sat on the couch next to one of the brunette men.

She did have a really hard time taking her eyes off of her, not wanting to get caught while staring. The woman looked stunning in her red flannel shirt tied up, showing her toned abs and the ripped denim shorts showing off those legs of hers that was to die for.

She should be mad at the woman, she had so many questions for her. Bur right now she couldn't, at least not now when she sat right in front of her, looking like that.

"Oh, you must be Santana!" the man with glasses said as he raised from the couch, followed by the others who also raised up from their seats. He was the first to see the Latina walking closer to them. "Well, of course you are! I recognize you from the magazines!" Santana already disliked the man after seeing him on the television, but this, this was not good. He recognized her from the gossip medias and not for her photographs.

"Yes, I'm Santana." she held out her hand for him to take as she took a questioning glance at the blonde, noticing her looking down on the floor, her hair covering most of her face.

"I'm Artie, the designer! Great meeting you!"

"I recognize you too," the Latina said as she smiled. "So, you are the designer? I love your work!" she lied as she successfully held back a laugh. Here she had thought that it was a woman who had designed the underwear, maybe even a little girl wanting to match outfits with her mother. But apparently not. She should've realized that it was him though. She had seen him and his work on television, even though she hadn't seen any underwear or lingerie there, he was famous for his colorful prints and patterns. If she actually had seen any lingerie, there was someone else on the show who kept all of her attention anyway.

"Why thank you!" he beamed. "This is Emma, our stylist and makeup artist for the day." Santana shook her hand as she greeted the redheaded woman, who by some reason wore gloves inside.

"Hi, I'm Kurt." she recognized him from Amsterdam and his voice from the panel interview, he was the man with the baby face. They also said their 'hellos', only one person left now...

"Hey, Britt! Don't be rude now, say hello properly!" Artie said as he looked in disbelief at his girlfriend who stood quietly next to him.

"How are you? Are you okay?" Santana asked in a worried tone as she looked at the blonde who still kept her head down.

"I'm so sorry. I don't know what's wrong with her today." Artie said shaking his head, before the blonde got a chance to respond herself. Santana couldn't believe what this man was saying, the girl was standing next to him for christ sake, she wasn't a kid, she could answer for herself and there's nothing wrong with her.

"Uhm..." Santana let out a noise to break the awkward silence. This would be one hell of a long day...

"Well, this is Brittany. My gir..." Artie began.

"Hi, I'm Brittany! I'm a model!" the blonde suddenly burst out a little louder than she had expected herself to do, as she held her hand out for Santana to take, she didn't want Artie to mention that she was already taken in front of the photographer. This had Santana laughing and blue eyes instantly connected with brown for the first time in over a year.

Brittany felt her heart melt at the Latina's laugh, she had missed it. She felt her own heart rate increase as her gaze met the brunette's. Santana's laugh was not only adorable and infectious, but it was like music that she wanted to dance to. It was somehow calming her nerves even though her heart was beating faster, in an unhealthy speed.

"Hi Britt. I'm Santana." Santana said as she shook the blonde's hand, not breaking their staring contest. "I can totally see that you're a model." she winked towards the leggy blonde, while she once again let her eyes rake over the blonde's body, not trying to hide it this time.

"Thanks." the blonde said as her cheeks turned a shade of pink and turned her face away from Santana, breaking their eye contact. Santana just wanted to touch the blonde's chin and bring their gazes back together, because she knew that she could get lost in those eyes, stare into them for days. But she also knew that wasn't an option. But the blush on Brittany's cheeks didn't go unnoticed by the Latina who was happy to have that effect on the blonde. Game on!

"Well, I guess I should go and prepare the camera setup. I'll tell Dave to open up the dressing room for you two." She said as she looked over at Brittany and Emma who nodded. "If you two want to do something else in the meantime," she turned to Kurt and Artie before continuing "beside waiting for the ladies here to get ready," she turned back to the two women and gave them a wink "just ask Dave to show you to the entertainment rooms." she smiled as she walked towards the stairs to talk to Dave. She could hear the others conversation as she walked away...

"Surprised Britt? I knew that you said that you wanted to work with Santana one day. You don't seem very happy though? Don't you want this?" Santana heard Artie say.

"Well, sure..." Brittany said hesitantly. To Santana it felt like a rock had been thrown straight into her perfect face. But those words was the only thing that Artie needed to know before he slung an arm around Brittany's waist and pulled her closer so he could nudge his nose with hers. He soon released her after giving her a quick peck on her nose.

"Great, just great." Santana mumbled as she turned back for a quick glance, only to catch the exchange between Artie and Brittany. Santana felt a sudden pang of anger hit her, which quickly turned into disappointment. She finally knew the reason behind the lack of contact between herself and the blonde the past year? This was why she had never tried to find me again? She wasn't available, because she had Artie? Did she cheat on him with me? Yes, it would be one hell of a long day... just breathe...

"Yeah, I'm really happy, just a bit surprised, that's all!" Brittany smiled, staring over his shoulder as she saw Santana leave the room to take the stairs.

The thing was that she really wanted this, she had wanted this ever since the first time that she had met Santana. Just not with Artie around.

**XXXX**


	7. Gleeful

**A/N: Here's the next part then. As I mentioned, this chapter and the one before should've been like one long part, but I decided to split it up.  
This is still like 2000 words longer than the previous ones. Whoops!  
I don't know though, it's not super good, I think it's mostly because I think it's more of a challenge to change POV's like this all the time, haha.**

**brittanabitch: Ahh! I know what you mean!**

**vikstar80: I'm glad you think so! They have been rather sneaky, haven't they?**

Thanks for the reviews and alerts, y'all!  
Feel free to leave reviews and let me know your opinions, maybe something you wish to see in the future?  
Enjoy the read!

* * *

**CHAPTER 7**

**FIVE DAYS EARLIER**

"Hey. Britt!"

"Yeah?"

"I booked you for a photo shoot next week." Quinn told as her friend looked excitedly at her. "You'll be modeling Artie's next collection."

"What? Artie's collection?" Brittany looked up skeptical.

"Yeah, I hope you don't mind. I'm sure people has seen you in less clothes than that before?" she joked.

"Of course," the taller blonde said before continuing, "but it's Artie..."

"I know what you mean." Quinn said as she made some gagging noises.

"Oh, stop! Not like that!" Brittany giggled.

"I promise you though, you won't regret this."

* * *

"Hey! You must be Brittany and Artie, with friends." Dave greeted the four people who he had just let in through the front door. All of them introduced each other to Dave as they shook his hand.

Brittany began to look around at her surroundings, always being the curious one. It looked like a small waiting room, with the receptionist called Dave, standing behind something that looked like a lit up bar with a laptop on. Very impressive. However, the house had a very welcoming feeling, it even smelled good in there, vanilla? The walls were covered in different fashion photographs, probably taken by the photographer who owned the house.

She had still no idea who the photographer would be, but she had been told by Artie and Quinn that it would be a surprise for when she would get there, and that she "totally would love it", to quote her friends. She absolutely loved surprises, but she had a weird feeling in her gut that this might not end well, she had no idea why.

"She should be here soon. I can let you in to the studio, instead of you waiting for her up her, if that's okay with you guys? I'll lead the way." Dave said and pointed for everyone to walk to the left.

The five people made their way down the hall that would lead them to the studio located in the basement. Brittany's eyes raked over the photographs that hung on the walls. There was something inspiring and exhilarating about them, but she couldn't help but think that she recognized a few of them, maybe she had seen them in some magazine.

They walked down the stairs, everyone small talking except for Brittany who was deep in thought, that never being a good sign.

Jaws dropped as they entered the final door that would lead them into Santana Lopez's personal photo studio and lair. The first thing they noticed was the size of the studio, and the next thing they noticed was the set that was already prepared for them.

The set consisted of mushrooms in different sizes that looked a lot like candy canes, trees with lollipops hanging down, an enormous tree stump painted in gold, real grass, branches and flowers, a pot of gold, a podium in the middle that looked like it was made of stone and cardboards painted and cut out to look like clouds, a sun and even a rainbow hung down from the roof.

"Holy shit Britt! Look at this!" the exclamation awoke Brittany from her thoughts. "They even got mushrooms that looks like candy canes!" She could tell that Artie was beyond excited for this shoot and she couldn't help but get excited herself as she stared in awe at the different props, not really believing that she would be the one to pose with it later. It was like a magical forest, and Brittany loved walking in forests, and she definitely loved magic.

"Yeah, it's really impressive. She always put down a lot of time to figure out the different settings for each shoot. She had a few friends over here yesterday to work and build up everything from scratch. They did a great job, didn't they?" Dave smiled to the small group of people who nodded. "Well, I should get back up. Never know when the boss decides to come in! I'll see you later!"

When the four of them was left alone, Brittany began to look around in the spacey studio. She had let her feet alone take her down the stairs, not really taking in her surroundings until now.

However, the first thing she laid her eyes on made it all dawn for her. Her heart began to beat faster. She was staring wide eyed at an enormous wall painting that she had seen so many times before, she even had a print of it in her room. But this was slightly different to the version she had seen before. This was painted with acrylic and not a printed copy. But it was beautiful nonetheless, maybe even more breathtaking than the original. The woman in her feathers and leather outfit, posing in the science lab had almost confirmed her previous thoughts. It was her studio. She was certain that this was Santana Lopez's studio.

"Hey, are you just going to stare over here or actually sit with us?" Artie said as he tugged on her sleeve and pointed towards a few couches standing in front of a wall covered with mirrors.

"Yeah, of course." she replied timidly and followed him.

As she got closer to the mirrors she began to realize what she was wearing. "I look like a prosti... no, no, no. This isn't happening. Why did I wear this today. Why, why, why..." she breathed out to herself, barely audible.

She wanted to impress the Latina, but with this outfit she wasn't sure if that would be possible. She looked desperate, showing too much skin for her own personal liking. She wanted to look beautiful and innocent, but this was just tacky.

The four of them sat down, they flipped through some magazines and talked about their expectations for the shoot, how much they liked the set and where and when the photos would be published.

Brittany barely listened, only nodding when people said something directly towards her.

She was once again deep in thought. She didn't know how she would react when she would meet the photographer again.

Questions like, "Will she even recognize me? What am I going to tell her if she do recognize me? Maybe she's mad?" was floating around in her head.

"Oh, you must be Santana!" Brittany heard the name being spoken by her boyfriend. Brittany had once again zoned out, but she just got her assumption fully confirmed and she was suddenly very aware of the situation they were in. Her boyfriend was here. Her Sant... no, not her. Santana was here, and she felt brown eyes bore into her while she did her best to keep her own eyes averted.

She knew that she had to do something though. This was what she had been waiting for, this moment.

She quickly looked up to rake her eyes over the smaller woman, before she turned her head back down. Her eyes nearly popped out of their places as she saw how beautiful the Latina looked in only a t-shirt, blazer and tight fitting shorts, her hair being in a messy bun and black glasses framing her brown eyes. Santana was dressed so casual, but that woman could still steal her breath away.

Her friends began to introduce each other to Santana. She had zoned out and didn't notice that they all wanted her to introduce herself to Santana, her '_big idol_', as they would joke.

She only began to listen when she heard Artie say "I don't know what's wrong with her today." _There is nothing wrong with me today? Or is it?_

"Well, this is Brittany. My gir..." he didn't get to finish his sentence.

"Hi, I'm Brittany! I'm a model!" she quickly said as she reached out her hand for Santana to take. She could feel her cheeks get warmer and her heart fluttering. _Why did I even say that? I'm so embarrassing. Uh, this will be one long day..._

But Santana just smiled at her, and Brittany had actually missed seeing that smile in real life.

"I can totally see that you're a model." Santana said and winked at her. _My heart is beating so fast right now... Is she flirting with me? Maybe she don't remember me? But I want her to remember... Oh lord, I'm blushing like a crazy person now, my cheeks are burning... Oh, God. What if Artie notices? I will be so dead... she'll be so dead... and I really don't want her to die. I need to talk to her alone later, that's for sure..._

* * *

The moment Santana saw Brittany walking down the stairs in a light blue robe it hit her. The woman would only wear underwear.  
When Santana first had seen the blonde and her posse, forty minutes ago, every thought of what clothes the woman would wear for the shoot disappeared, exactly like her anger had disappeared. Left was her heart beating out of her chest, her breath hitching, her mind being blank... the only thing she actually felt was pure disappointment, even though she hadn't gotten Brittany's relationship with Artie confirmed, she wasn't blind. She saw the small touches, the whispers and the looks he gave her. Maybe she had just been Brittany's little experiments, she had to accept that and move on.

"Sooo... how is this going to work?" Kurt chirped, as he raised from the chair to go and compliment Emma for her work with the hair and makeup.

"You've never been to a shoot before?" Santana asked surprised as she looked over at Kurt.

"Well, of course! I was just thinking that maybe you don't," Kurt gulped audibly. "you don't work..." he looked around nervously. "I don't know... different... I mean... uhm..." the man stuttered out. He had been to a lot of photo shoots before and knew the general idea of how they usually worked. But Santana might have had some different views on things, some of her work was iconic after all. Kurt rarely joined the models, this time he had joined them only because he wanted to meet the photographer, well, he did want to support his friend too. But he had heard so much about the photographer, not only famous for her work, but also for her personality and reputation with women. He wanted to see and hear her vicious words for himself before he would believe everything he had heard and read about the fiery Latina. But she did seem pretty normal and laid back...

"Hey, don't worry! No need to be scared of me! I don't bite!" the latina smiled widely. When Kurt began to look calm she surprised him by showing him her teeth in which it looked like she took a bite, with sudden anger grazing her face. This had the brunette man jump back in pure shock. The group began to laugh as Santana told the Kurt that she couldn't help herself. "And no, I think I work like most photographers do. You know, point and shoot." she said and winked.

Santana told Brittany what she had planned out for her. She would begin with standing by the podium, holding and eating cotton candy. Later she would lie down on the podium. Sit on the tree stump, reach for the lollipops in the trees, pretend to pick flowers, maybe use the water can on herself... what could she say? It might look weird picking flowers in a studio, but Santana had a lot of ideas and this was what she loved doing.

"Are you ready?" Santana asked Brittany who still had her robe on, looking slightly nervous.

"Yeah, I'm just nervous."

"I promise. No need to be, you'll do great." Santana smiled as she squeezed Brittany's arm, suddenly her body felt all tingly and she realized, for her own sake, that touching the model probably wasn't a very good idea. So she loosened her grip and dropped her arm to her side.

Brittany instantly missed the touch the moment Santana had released her arm from her grip, she had also felt a jolt run through her body the moment the Latina had touched her. But Santana's reassurance was the only thing that Brittany wanted as she called over Emma to hold her robe for her.

She slowly slipped out off the robe, now only sporting a light blue set of underwear with pink cotton candy and wrapped caramel print on. The boxer panties being a tight fit, making her already tight bum look slightly bigger and her hair flowing down her shoulders, covering parts of the bra.  
She smiled at Santana as she tried to look innocent and sexy at the same time, batting her eyelashes.

Santana's mouth fell wide open and before she would catch herself drooling she quickly closed it again. _Is she flirting? Oh God, she's hot..._ Her mouth went dry and her eyes wide. Sure, she had seen the woman in less clothes before, but it had been a while since then, and she couldn't help but feeling hotter the moment the robe was off.

The toned stomach, the longs legs, the muscular arms, she was fit and it wasn't too much muscles, just perfect. However, what she still thought was the most mesmerizing thing about the woman in front of her was those piercing blue eyes and the perfect curve that was her smile. The blonde model could only be described as breathtaking. There was something about that innocence too, that didn't seem too innocent. She had sex appeal... _oh, that night in Amsterdam... fucking shit, I gotta stop these thoughts now..._ she felt her own cheeks get hotter.  
She had to put on her business mode right now, before it would be too late.

"Okay. Let's get started." Santana said after clearing her dry throat with some water as Kurt eyed her suspiciously.

They began to work. The flash beeping and going off non-stop as Brittany worked it in front of the camera like it was the only thing she had ever done. Brittany received a lot of praise from Santana for doing a great job, coming up with different poses and positions.

Brittany loved being in front of the camera and she felt extra comfortable with the Latina behind it, all of her nervousness had suddenly disappeared and she hadn't felt this confident and daring in a long while. She felt safe, even though she only stood there in bra and panties.  
She could see that Santana was really focused on getting the best pictures out of her. She could also tell that the Latina liked what she saw based on the way the Latina's chest moved up and down, and the fact that she tried to hide her face behind the camera, which only caused her to smile even wider, even though that kind of ruined the pictures since Santana wanted her to look serious.

Santana tried her best to hide her flushed face behind the camera as she helped the blonde with how she should position herself for the best result.

"Spread your legs a little more." Brittany did what she was told as she sat on the tree stump, looking seductively straight into the camera. The mix of innocence and sex appeal showing right through. "Yeah. Just like that!" the photographer continued as she looked through the viewfinder only to see Brittany winking at her, like the first time they had seen each other. Santana gulped visibly.

_Yes, two could play this game_, Brittany thought as she remembered how the Latina had made her blush furiously when she had arrived.

"Yeah, work it baby!" Artie shouted from behind Santana as he looked at the pictures popping up on the computer screen. Artie's voice made the Latina turn around and give him an annoyed glare. Kurt was not the only one who knew about the Latina's reputation. Artie also knew that you didn't pick a fight with Santana, who apparently had lived in Lima Heights Adjacent, so he slumped his shoulder and walked back to the couches in the corner.

* * *

So far, the photo shoot had went well, over her own expectations. She never expected the model to be this good, but, well, when she saw who the model was, she knew that it would be great nonetheless.

With only one outfit change left she decided to call down Dave to bring a little extra prop to the studio, that she herself had created.

"Dave!" Santana shouted up through the stairs, her voice echoing in the studio.

"Yes, Santana?" Dave shouted back from upstairs.

"Bring down the head!" Santana smirked towards Brittany, who's happy mood and big smile was suddenly replaced with confusion and her mouth formed like an 'o'-shape. She even looked a little scared.

"A head? What kind of head? I hope it isn't an animal head... or a human..." Brittany whispered out. She would never pose with anything like that, but she never thought that Santana would keep a real head in her house... or would she? She didn't really know her, she had just read a lot, like, **a lot**, about her in magazines and heard stuff from friends. But never had she read anything about her keeping heads in her house.

This caused Santana to giggle. Yes, she only ever giggled in the company of this blonde.

"Hey, we never spoke about having a head for this. Is that even legal?" Kurt piped in, raising an eyebrow. His hypothesis about the Latina having a bit different working ethics might be true after all...

"Geez, what the hell guys. Who do you think I am? A killer? If anything, I'm just a killer bitch." She exclaimed as the eyes staring at her widened. "Oh, and don't worry, you will see soon."

Tina had gladly helped Santana when she asked her for help when she had mentioned that she wanted to create a head for the shoot. She didn't know that it was Brittany who would be the model. But she had kept the blonde in her mind when she came up with the idea.

"You did an amazing job today. I just thought I'd give you a little treat." Santana winked at the blonde.

"Uhh..." was heard from the stairs. "Santana! Come and help me with this!"

"Hey! Aren't you a bear? I thought you'd be a little stronger..." Santana joked with Dave as she looked up through the staircase.

"You did not just say that! Come and get this before I drop it down on you!" he threatened.

"Oh no, you would not!" the Latina rushed up through the stairs to carry down the enormous head herself. "Hey! This isn't even heavy!"

"I know, I just didn't want to take the extra steps down there." Dave said and turned around to walk back to his computer.

"Lucky you that I don't have time for you right now!" she shouted after him as he walked away.

* * *

"Ihkkkk!" Brittany squealed." Oh my God!" she continued as she jumped up and down in excitement like a little girl on Christmas, clapping her hands between pointing at what Santana had just brought down the stairs.

"Wow." was the only word that Kurt said as he looked with big eyes at the enormous head.

"Oh my God..." Brittany repeated as she tried to calm herself down, still smiling wide and clapping her hands.

"That. Shit. Cray!" Artie said as he took a look at what his girlfriend found so exciting.

"That looks amazing. Great work, ms. Lopez." Emma said as she smiled towards the brunette.

"Thank you! I made it myself." Santana said with a proud look upon her face as she looked between the head in her arms and Brittany, who stood a couple of feet away. She couldn't help but smile as she saw the look upon Brittany's face, she looked ecstatic and happy beyond words.

"Can I," Brittany paused, her eyes gleaming in awe. "can I try it on?"

"Yeah, duhh!" Santana said, smiling back at the woman in front of her. "Since this is the final photos I guess we don't need to care for the makeup and hair?"

"No!" Brittany exclaimed quickly. "Gimme! I want to try it now!" she whined jokingly.

"Sure, baby girl." Santana said and gave Brittany her signature smirk.

* * *

Brittany was excited to say the least. She had never seen anything this amazing before. Something that oozed so much "Brittany". But this? This was pure Brittany. She assumed that she would enjoy and love all of the pictures taken before the last outfit change, after all, Santana had taken them! But the last one, it would be the best, the ultimate one. She would be in front of the camera, wearing a mask made by Santana, with Santana behind the camera. She had wanted to work with a colorful collection, even though Artie wasn't her first choice to fulfill that, she still got the opportunity. It was her dream to work and meet Santana again, and she got that too. Now, here was a new dream of hers, something she didn't know she was dreaming about until it was right in front of her. She had never even in her wildest imagination seen this happen. This would be a memory for life, for sure.

The girl she had dreamed about meeting again stood right in front of her, holding up an enormous papier-mâché mask that was supposed to fit on someone's head. It was a unicorn head. It looked realistic, smooth lines and nicely painted in white with colorful details.

"You did this for me?" Brittany said as she stared lovingly into Santana's eyes.

"Well, I didn't know who the model would be sooo..." Santana said as she stared right back into those blue eyes, smiling. However, she thought that she saw the blonde flinch at her words. _I need to stop imagine things..._

"Oh. Okay." Brittany said, a little hurt, but she still smiled widely. Nonetheless, this was amazing.

"But when I saw that it was you that I'd be photographing today, I thought that this definitely would suit you and your personality. Not everyone would get this excited over getting the opportunity to wear a unicorn head." She felt uncomfortable admitting all of this, but she also felt the urge to let it out. She had the blonde in mind when she created it, but being honest about that now, with the people around, that would be beyond awkward, not to forget mentioning a bit creepy. _'Well, yeah, me and Britt have met each other before, we spent an amazing night together once, I've not been able to forget about her ever since...' _Yeah, no. That would definitely be awkward...

Brittany's eyes lit up at all of the new information that she had just been given. _Does she know stuff about my personality? That unicorns are my favorite animal, like, ever? Remind myself to ask about that later..._

"We should get ready, shall we?"

* * *

"Hey, Britt?" Santana carefully knocked a little on the unicorn head. "Can you breathe in there?"

"Yes. But. Uhm... Santana? Where are you?" Brittany reached around herself, struggling to find someone to hold on to. "These holes are tiny. I can't see anything." Brittany giggled.

"Oh, I'm here honey." Santana flinched as she heard Artie raise from his chair to walk over and help Brittany out.

Inside the mask, Brittany's face fell as she felt her boyfriend's hands touch her shoulders to walk her back to the set. She had specifically asked for Santana. She knew that she shouldn't be thinking these things since she had Artie, but she had wanted to feel Santana's touch so bad. Her soft skin against hers, feel the tingling sensation run through her whole body as they would touch. Just to graze her own fingertips over Santana's skin would be enough. To have Santana lead the way, not like Artie, who was more like pushing her forward from behind. She had never felt that _want_ when she was around Artie. She didn't know Santana, but the way the woman made her feel...

* * *

"Oh my God, Britt. I still can't believe you're actually doing this right now. I can only imagine how you're feeling." Kurt said as he took out his phone for the billionth time to snap a picture of the scene in front of him. "I'm going to tweet this..." he mumbled as he type a short message on his phone.

"How do I look?" Brittany said teasingly as she put a hand on her hip and the other pointing into the camera.

"You look amazing babe." Artie said, trying to hold back on his words since he had noticed how the Latina reacted each time he interrupted. He didn't put that much thought on it though. You don't mess with that lady.

"Yes, you look super cool, Brittany." Emma said as she smiled at Brittany, even though she knew that the woman couldn't see it through her mask.

"Yeah, you look amazing. Work it!" Santana exclaimed. This caused the the blonde inside the big head to smile. "Yeah, continue like that. Put your head forward a bit."

Brittany did as she was told.

It was starting to get hot inside the unicorn head, like, super hot. Like, 'I can't breath hot'...

She began to feel nauseous and started to get a hard time breathing. Suddenly she couldn't, so she gasped for air as she tried to wave for help...

She felt her knees get weak under her. She had prepared herself to hit the floor, but right before she'd fall she felt strong arms hold her tight, smiling as she felt the softness, the rubbing thumbs. Through the small holes in the mask she saw who they belonged to... then everything turned black.

Santana had not been this worried since, well, she had never been this worried before. She felt this weird connection towards the woman she held in her arms, even though she didn't know her. It was weird. But she was worried, really worried.

The first thing they did was to take off the unicorn head, they even got it off in one piece. Then they quickly called Dave to come down and help lift Brittany to the couch. Dave was actually really strong.

Artie decided to go out and hunt for some water and something for her to eat when she would wake up. Kurt decided to sit by Brittany's side and dab a cold towel on Brittany's overheated skin, together with Santana who stroked the blonde's hair away from the red face, trying to calm herself down. Emma was pacing back and fourth while talking to herself, freaking out, not really used to this kind of things to happen. Not that any of them were used to people fainting.

* * *

Brittany could feel something cold on her forehead, but what really had awoken her was the touch of someone soothingly stroking her head. Her eyes opened slowly, trying to get used to the bright light in the room, she rubbed her eyes to get a clearer vision. She had no idea what was going on or where she was. Someone was stroking her hair and it felt really nice. She was about to doze off again when she heard a voice speak to her.

"Britt. Britt! Wake up..." She recognized that voice. Santana Lopez. Was it Santana who rubbed her head?

Suddenly a wave of memories came back to her. The photo shoot! The underwear, the flirting in between and during the outfit changes, the looks they had shared, the unicorn head... the arms around her waist... she remembered seeing those brown eyes looking worriedly at her through the mask, before everything turned black. _Did I faint? How long was I gone? God, I feel exhausted. And this is kind of embarrassing too. In front of my friends... and Santana._

She tried to sit up properly, but a hand held her down.

"Britt. Try and stay calm, alright? Relax." Santana said in a soft tone as she looked at the woman who laid in front of her, who looked so vulnerable and weak. She herself got up from her seat. More like trying to get herself to relax.

"Yeah Britt. Everything will be fine." Kurt said as he brushed away some strands of hair that was covering Brittany's face.

"How long was I out?" Brittany finally mumbled out, still loud enough for Kurt to hear the question though.

"Not too long. Just a couple of minutes. We were really worried though." Kurt said as he took a knowingly glance over at Santana who nervously walked around in the room, turning off the soft boxes.

"Where's... where's Artie?"

"Oh, he went out to get some food for you. Apparently Santana didn't have anything in the fridge. But he should be back soon, don't worry." Kurt said, not really caring about where Artie was. He had never really liked the man either, due to obvious reasons. Artie cheated on one of his best friends, it was a valid reason not to like him.

Brittany didn't really care where Artie was either. All the thinking made her even more tired than she already was, and she felt her eyelids close once again as she fell asleep on the couch, with a certain Latina on her mind.

* * *

Brittany slept on the couch as Santana decided to try and calm herself down by looking through some of the pictures they had taken earlier.  
They had ended up with a lot of different photos. It had been at least ten different outfit changes, different lighting settings and different poses. They had only been working for a few hours too, but with amazing result.  
She was surprised to see that someone could pull off looking good in this kind of underwear. Like she had told herself a few days ago, this did look like something a little girl would wear. Then she remembered that it was Brittany, and Brittany would probably look good if she wore a trash bag.

Artie picked out some of his favorite photos as Kurt and Emma looked in awe at the different images in front of them. Dave had also come down to join them and to see the result. All of the pictures looked really good, even unedited, and Brittany had done an exceptional job in front of the camera, at least before she fainted.

Suddenly they heard a small groan from the couch and ten eyes suddenly averted from the computer screen to the woman who was about to wake up after a few hours of sleep.

"What time is it?" Brittany said in a low voice.

"It's a little over 7." Dave said as he looked down at his watch.

"Oh, we should get going." Kurt said as he looked a little concerned at his blonde friend.

"Yeah, I really need to go back home too." Emma said shyly, hoping not to sound too forward to move on after what had happened about two hours ago.

"Oh, okay." Santana said as she too looked with concerned eyes at Brittany who now sat up. "How are you feeling?" Santana said as she realized how stupid that sounded. Of course she didn't feel good.

"I'm fine, I think." Brittany said as she smiled at Santana, to let her know that she really was okay.

Artie and Kurt walked closer to Brittany to give her hugs and ask if she was okay to walk. Brittany said that she could walk, but as she stood up she felt a little nauseous, so Artie and Kurt helped holding her up as they slowly walked her up through the stairs and take her out to their cars.

* * *

The only thing she could think about as she felt her boyfriend and friend's arm around her was that they didn't feel like Santana's, and they weren't Santana's either. Stronger, definitely, at least in the sense of muscles, at least compared to Artie's. But not as strong as in the sense of how many different feelings that had been awoken inside of her when Santana had held her in her strong arms. As Artie and Kurt helped her get up through the stairs and out to the car that she would take to get back into the city, she turned her head around. She was met with those captivating brown eyes looking back at her a few feet away. She could feel butterflies in her stomach. She just wanted to run back to Santana, into her arms and hold her tight. Thank her for not letting her hit her head, thank Santana for not letting her fall. However, deep down, Brittany knew that it was too late, because she had already fallen...

"Hey, Santana. Even after the circumstances," she hovered her hand in front of her to show what she meant. "I must say that I've never felt this fuzzy after a shoot." Brittany said, smiling.

"Very funny. Ha-ha." Santana said sarcastically. "I feel really bad though. I shouldn't have brought down that head for you." she said as she looked down, blaming herself that the blonde had fainted.

"Oh, stop. The unicorn was the best part of the day!" _Well, second best, after meeting you again..._ "It's really not your fault. I'll blame myself. I should've just told you when it got too hot in there." Brittany said as she kept smiling. "Hey guys, I can take a few steps alone, I think." she said as the arms holding her let go so she could walk forward to Santana.

The gap between them got smaller and Santana gulped. She felt relieved that Brittany could walk without help. _Even after fainting and sleeping for two hours she look amazing..._

"Hi." Brittany said as she smiled towards Santana, they stood right in front of each other now.

"Hello." Santana said and smirked.

"Today was really amazing. Don't blame yourself for anything." the blonde said as she stared into Santana's eyes and reached her arm out to touch the Latina's arm to stroke it, to show that she truly meant every word she said, this made Santana cock her eyebrow in a '_You don't need to say this_'-way, but Santana also averted her gaze to look at the hand that was rubbing on her arm. "Hey," the Latina met the blue eyes again, "I mean it." she said and stopped her stroking to slap Santana's arm instead. "Actually, it was an honor to work with you and I hope we can do it again someday." _I really wish you were my personal photographer, you made me feel so safe and happy today..._

"It was an honor to work with you too, Britt." Santana said before she continued, "and I also hope that we will work together again one day." she said as she felt her heart beat faster. "It was lovely meeting you," Santana said before leaning in for a long hug, "again." she whispered as she rubbed the back of the blonde, hoping to make her feel a little better.

Brittany nearly thought that her heart would stop when she heard it. But Santana didn't look fazed, like she hadn't noticed the words that came out of her own mouth. _Again_. It was her confirmation. Santana had remembered her. She knew that the woman had been with many other's before, and most likely after her, as well and the thought of it made her heart tighten. But this meant that she had in fact remembered her, _her_. Not some other woman.

Their little moment got interrupted by Artie who had come back from helping Emma loading the car with the bags that they had brought with them.

"Hey, Santana," he began. "Thank you for taking care of my Britt while I went out to get food." Artie said. Santana could feel her chest tighten, '_my Britt_'...

"No, no. It's fine, I understand that you had to get something for her." She suddenly felt really angry, she even wanted to hit him, she preferred using words rather than being physical when it came to this though. She really thought he was a major douche before, but to leave his girlfriend in a situation like that. _I could've gone out to get food while he took care of her. Not that I wanted to leave her side... and I don't want to imagine them together like that either..._

"Well, actually... I'd like to invite you to a little gathering, as a thank you." Artie continued, oblivious to the Latina's clenched fists and slightly upset facial expression. "We, the cast of Fashion Lies Everywhere, always have viewing parties every Tuesday. I guess Britt won't go tonight, but we would love for you to join us next week." he smiled at her genuinely. "Unless you already got plans?"

Brittany looked at Santana expectantly...

* * *

**A/N: Will she accept or decline, that's the question...**


	8. Home feeling

**A/N: First of all, thanks again for the alerts/reviews!  
Secondly. I was wondering if anyone of you got any fic recommendations? I'm currently reading a few, but I'd love to read some more!**

**I forgot to mention in the last chapter. That unicorn head? Totally inspired by the Cheerios dinosaur masks. You may have noticed that?**

**Anyway. There's actually a bunch of things inspired by Glee and the actual cast in the fic. Have anyone noticed that too?**

**Anyway. In this chapter Brittany and Santana realize something about themselves...**

**Still don't own Glee, y'all.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 8**

It was suddenly another Tuesday. It had been a week since Santana reluctantly had agreed to attend the viewing party with the cast of Fashion Lies Everywhere. Artie didn't need to know that the only plans Santana had for Tuesday evenings was to watch the show that he was a part of. Though, she did have mixed feelings about meeting Brittany in that kind of setting, a non-work setting. Santana wouldn't know anyone, except for Rachel and Mercedes. Rachel had literally begged on her knees when Santana had accidentally slipped information about her Tuesday plans, while Mercedes was the diva she usually was and just invited herself over, no arguing and certainly no begging on the floor.

But the main reason behind those mixed feelings was that Brittany would be there... with Artie and their friends.

This Tuesday also meant that it had been a week since the last time that she had met the blonde. They had been speaking over the phone a few times the past week, talking about the photos they had taken, work, life, nonsense... but they never spoke about one certain topic, it was like a rule they had, to not bring it up. But that didn't stop the Latina to wonder.

What had really happened in Amsterdam? Everything about that day and night was confusing and was still haunting Santana. She just wanted her answers, but she never found the right opportunity and when she tried to bring it up, it was like Brittany could sense where they were heading with the conversation. So her questions were still unanswered, but she did plan on getting them, soon.

During their calls Santana had learnt that Brittany was a few years younger than herself, four years younger, to be exact. She had been in the industry for longer than herself though. Starting at a young age with an internship she was very lucky to get, which later lead to her being found by an agency who spotted her height and graceful moves when she had been at work. Brittany mentioned moving around a lot, but had finally settled for New York when she got casted for Fashion Lies Everywhere.

Apparently she had a roommate too. One that wasn't Artie. But a woman. She didn't get a name, but as long as the person's name didn't start with an 'A' and end with 'rtie', she was content. Not that she would ever tell the blonde that she was happy to hear that she didn't live with her boyfriend. But she also got to hear stories about Britt's and Artie's past, the on and off, the cheating, the way he looked down at women in general... that was something Santana wasn't very happy to hear, it disgusted her. She didn't understand how someone could use someone as precious as Brittany...

But then she remembered that that was exactly the things she had done to other women for years, and it still happened. She had used them for sex, for her own pleasure, not for anyone else's pleasure, only her own.  
All those one-night stands. She had never regretted it afterwards, no remorse whatsoever. The thought that she had actually used someone had never hit her either, until her conversations with Brittany. It may have been there, in the back of her head somewhere, but she had always pushed it away. The way Artie had treated Brittany, and still did. Artie was like herself. She didn't even remember, or knew all the names of the women she had slept with, used. She didn't know what they were like. They could've been really kind, humble and loving. She had probably ruined so much in the past, so much she didn't even know about. She knew she had ruined at least two relationships, but she had never cared in the past, since it didn't concern herself, it didn't affect her in any way.  
As the realization hit her, a single tear fell and she felt ashamed, stupid even.

* * *

"Are you ready soon? We need to get Mercedes too..." Rachel said in a whiny tone as she stood dressed in her white beret and striped, five-colored, coat, ready to leave the apartment since twenty minutes ago.

"Yeah. Stop whining. Why are you so excited to go over to Brittany's for this viewing party anyway?" Santana asked, she knew that her friend was as obsessed as herself when it came to the show, but she couldn't help teasing a little. "Oh, and you look ridiculous in that outfit." Santana let out a loud laugh as she eyed her roommate's outfit.

"I really like the show!" Rachel said really fast, as everything she says. She ignored the last sentence. Rachel might know one tiny piece of information that Santana didn't know, but she didn't plan on ruin the little surprise either, because she knew that if Santana knew, Santana wouldn't go. Sometimes her roommate had too much pride in herself.

"Sure. I'm ready. Do I look good?"

"Super hot!" Rachel said as she smiled widely at Santana.

"Yeah, okay. No need to get all excited over the hotness that is me." Santana said jokingly. "That's gross." she continued as Rachel just waved off her last comment.

* * *

When they were done filming the season they had all decided to start having viewing parties every week whenever the show would air. Just watch it together, enjoy the company and laugh together at what they once had said or done. Sometimes there would be awkward moments, if someone had said something about another castmate, but those moments usually didn't last for long, they were drowned with alcohol, laughter and excuses.

Upon coming up with the idea to have viewing parties, they also decided that they would have a rotating schedule regarding what place they would crash each week. Tonight the turn had come to "the two blondes". That's why Quinn and Artie was preparing the living room with all different sorts of candies and snacks, not to forget mentioning the drinks. The booze would surely flow tonight. However, Brittany wasn't too keen on the alcohol due to different stripping accidents when she was younger. But that didn't mean she couldn't appreciate a few glasses of wine and a shot here and there.

While her friends were preparing, Brittany paced around in her room, throwing out all kinds of clothes from her wardrobe, trying to pick the perfect outfit.

She didn't want it to be over the top, just enough. It would be too weird if she dressed up like attending a ball when they would only be lounging around at home with her friends. What they had done every week for the past two months, except for last week when Brittany had decided to stay in and rest after her little... fall. For these gatherings she'd usually just wear jeans and a nice shirt. But tonight? Tonight would be different. For the first time, they had invited someone that wasn't some of the castmates partners, they had invited "outsiders", to quote Sam.

But she couldn't help but smile as she remembered her last conversation with Santana. It had taken place two days prior.

Santana had accidentally asked if the 'date' was still on, which made the blonde giggle as she felt her heart flutter, while Santana just excused herself and that she didn't mean it like that. It was awkward, but also very adorable. Unfortunately it wouldn't be a date, but the party was still on. The Latina had also asked if it was okay for her to bring two of her friends, which wasn't any problem for Brittany who loved meeting new people. The more the merrier, for sure.

They had spoken a lot the past week, her and Santana. Not only because she felt guilty for fainting during work at Santana's studio. But because she really enjoyed talking to the photographer. It was so easy to just open up. They made each other laugh in a way she never had before and she enjoyed just listening to the voice of the Latina and her heart, well, she couldn't describe that feeling. Most of the times they'd talk to each other she was lying in bed, it was calming to just talk, let everything out like she had known the brunette for years. She could always feel herself exhaling and inhaling deeper as she felt the calmness rush over her senses, just imagining what it would be like if the Latina would be there, laying next to her and talk like there was no tomorrow, their eyes meeting as they would laugh and smile until they'd both fall asleep in each others arms...

She already knew that they had a few stuff in common, like their work and stuff. But their conversation made her realize that they had a lot more in common than what she previously had assumed. They were in it for the depth, for the art, and not for their fair share of exclusive parties and nice offers, even though that was a plus.

"I want to capture the beauty in the world" was something that Santana had said sleepily one evening.

For the past years in the industry she had always wanted all of the attention to be around her, never having a bigger goal to reach.

But now, after thinking over it? That didn't feel like something she'd want in the long run.

Just then, Brittany realized how much she wanted to express that beauty, that Santana spoke of, in her own expressions. She didn't want to do sexy lingerie shoots for men and women to drool over. She wanted to do beautiful lingerie shoots and she wanted people to say, "God, she beautiful. But I'm also beautiful as I am" after seeing the images. But she really didn't like lingerie shoots anyway, the photographers were usually sleazy and major perverts. _Except for one. But that's not the point here..._

Most of all she wanted to be able to put out every emotion she felt inside, in the expression that would be captured on a photograph, on something that would last forever. She wanted to show love, vulnerabilities, heart wrench, the good and bad...

She didn't want to look expressionless anymore. But not seductive either. She just wanted all of her feelings to show through one single photo.

Brittany knew that Santana had many questions she wanted answers for, probably nagging the brunette's mind. But she would stick to her plan, even though she had almost slipped. She would explain everything eventually, but not over the phone, never do feelings over the phone. _Because, that's what it was, wasn't it? Feelings?_

* * *

Brittany was still undressed as she was flipping through her last pieces of fashion that was still on display in her wardrobe. The rest was either on the floor, her bed or the armchair next to her. But that's when she spotted _it_. Far at the back on the top shelf.

It was an old skirt that she had shuffled in there when she had packed up all of her belongs the day she moved in. It had been her favorite a few years ago, that's why she hadn't given it away to Charity, her old cat. _Rest in Peace... _The skirt was black with tiny white hearts on it. But the thing was, it was pretty tiny, but only at the length.

As she tried it on she realized that it still fit perfectly around her waist. As a model, she was slender, but not skinny like many of her other female model friends. Her body was toned from all the dancing and running that was included in her daily repertoire.

But back to the skirt. It was small. But that's why she decided upon using it. It showed off her long, toned legs and if she'd bend over, it would show off her lace panties. Not that she planned on bending over or anything.

Not only had she learnt about Santana's view on work. But she had also received some useful information about what kind of girl Santana was looking for. Apparently the Latina was looking for someone the opposite of herself, with a few similarities. Which meant someone calm, kind, creative, loving, goofy, outgoing, easygoing... tall... blonde... blue eyes... infectious smile... no weird laugh... nice teeth... nice hygiene in general... Santana had even sighed when she mentioned all the different traits and things that would ultimately be her dream woman, meaning that she would probably never meet her.

Brittany had felt herself melting as she heard every different trait and look that Santana was looking for. She didn't think that Santana realized, but the Latina had pretty much described _her_, on spot.

* * *

"Baby, come down!" Artie shouted. "Sam, Joe and Sugar just arrived!"

"Coming!" Brittany shouted back as she ran down the stairs, careful not to fall.

As she hurried to enter the living room she was met with a bunch of wide eyes looking straight at her, as if they had just been talking about her, like deers caught in headlight. She felt uncomfortable under their gazes as she greeted them and took her place next to Artie, who eyed her up and down, lingering a little longer on her legs and cleavage which could be seen through the thin see-through material. She suddenly regretted the skimpy choice, not taking into consideration that her _boyfriend_ would actually be there, as well as the certain brunette that would come over soon.

"Nice skirt." Artie said in a seductive tone as he leaned in to kiss his girlfriend on her lips, his hand reaching to graze over Brittany's back, only to lower itself over her butt and squeezes a little. Brittany caught the glare that Sugar sent her way, which couldn't be blamed on the aspergers, as she took a tiny step away from Artie, hoping that no one noticed her move.

* * *

Brittany was becoming worried and was fidgeting with her skirt, an old habit. She had told Santana to come by at 6 since the show would start at 8 and they all were going to drink and do some karaoke before the show would start. It was now 6.40 and no sign, call or message from Santana.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. Brittany excused herself as she hurried over to the door. Everyone she expected had already arrived, except for Santana and her friends.

"You must be Brittany, huh?" a woman said in a mocking tone, lingering forward, sending over a wink at the blonde.

"Y-y-yeah?" Brittany stuttered out as she looked at the woman in front of her with wide eyes. The stranger was very intimidating and by some reason it made her really nervous.

"Nice outfit." the woman winked again. Yes, very intimidating. "I was told that there's a party to crash here?" the woman continued in an intimidating tone. And if possible, Brittany's eyes widened even more. She thought she recognized the woman from somewhere, but right now, her only concern was that she was really scared that someone would ruin their party. Maybe it was some creepy stalker who wanted their autographs or something... she reached for her phone, which was tucked into her bra, so it was quite obvious what she was trying to do... but she was ready to call the police...

A few giggles were heard from the stairwell. Brittany's eyes moved suspiciously from the woman in front of her to where she thought she heard giggles coming from and then back to the woman again, who was now showing off her white teeth in a big smile.

"Sorry!" the woman nearly shouted as she bent over, cracking up. Brittany had no idea what was going on, but she felt a lot more calm now. Even smiling at the woman in front of her. "You can come forward now!" she said as she turned her eyes back to look at the stairwell.

"Oh God! You should've seen your face!" Santana exclaimed as she finally burst out laughing.

"Santana!" Brittany's eyes lit up as she saw the Latina coming closer, she took the last step and engulfed the brunette in a tight hug, inhaling the smell of Santana's vanilla perfume and the soft hair brushing against her cheek. As they moved away from each other Brittany continued to speak, "Well, excuse me for thinking that..." she turned herself to face the woman who she thought would kill her, to be a little overdramatic.

"Mercedes. Mercedes Jones." the woman finally got a name as Brittany reached out her hand to shake Mercedes's, but the new guest made it into a tight hug instead. "Sorry for scaring you."

"Oh, hi Mercedes." Brittany smiled. "Well, excuse me for thinking that Mercedes here," she tapped the woman's shoulder lightly, "was about to crash our party or kill me!"

"Of course not. She's really friendly." Santana said in a sarcastic tone as she pointed at Mercedes. Brittany giggled at Santana's attempt to act like a badass.

"I'm afraid that we haven't introduced each other yet." Rachel said, which got the attention from Brittany.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Brittany." Brittany said as she smiled widely at the short brunette.

"I'm Rachel Berry, but I hope you know who I am already." Rachel said as she reached forward to shake Brittany's hand. However, this time it was the blonde who reached forward for a hug instead. Which left a surprised Rachel.

"Uhm... I don't kn..." Santana nudged Brittany and shook her head, just hoping that Rachel wouldn't notice. Brittany got the point though, and continued, "Oh, of course I know who you are, Rachel Berry!" she smiled.

"I knew you would! I'm a big fan of your work as well! Your legs are just to die for!" Rachel exclaimed as she smiled even wider.

"Thanks." Brittany blushed, something that didn't go unnoticed by Santana who sent Rachel an evil glare.

"Okay. First question." Brittany continued. "Who's idea was it to scare me like that?" she asked as she tried to look as upset as possible, taking a glance at the three women in front of her, to see if any of them would look more guilty than the other. "You're really intimidating, you know that?" she said as her eyes met with Mercedes, who only nodded and smirked in a 'yeah, you know it' kind of way. When her eyes met Rachel's she didn't see any hint of guilt, or even interest in what had conspired a few minutes prior. Lastly, she laid her eyes on Santana. Santana, who grinned mischievously at her with sparkling brown eyes. Brittany could only assume who was the genius behind the little prank.

"You little..." she continued, trying to sound angry, apparently without any success, because she could her Santana laughing at her.

"Sorry, I just..." Santana officially burst out laughing. "Oh God, I'm so sorry Britt." she said in between laughter.

The whole scenario earned a few concerned glances between the two friends who stood next to Santana. They had never seen their friend so, happy? Easygoing? Santana was never one to just burst out laughing or even pranking people. Unless the person was named Rachel Berry, of course.

"Whoa, you need to calm down." Mercedes said as she looked in disbelief at her friend. Not believing that Santana was actually crying out of laughter. "Okay, don't. I need a picture of this!" she said as she took out her phone to snap a few photos of the teary eyed Latina.

"What's so funny?" Brittany asked, not sure if she had missed some internal joke.

"You." Santana said after calming down, wiping away a few tears.

"Why?" Brittany said quizzically.

"Well, you're just... you." Santana said as she smiled at the blonde woman, staring right into her eyes.

"Thanks. I guess?" Brittany bit her lip as she could sense a blush creeping up, the warmth taking over her face.

* * *

After a few more seconds standing outside the actual apartment, Brittany excused for letting them stand outside and finally let the small group inside.

As Santana entered the apartment she felt like she was back in high school with her friends and their house parties. It smelled differently though. Like a mix of Brittany's intoxicating smell, alcohol and some other perfume that she recognized.

There was something about the interior in the foyer that made her feel like she had seen it all before. The decorations, photographs...

It kind of reminded her of a house she'd been over at a lot when she was a teen... Fa...

"Fabray?" Santana exclaimed disbelievingly as her eyes went comically wide, almost as if she'd seen a ghost. If she would've had anything in her mouth, she was pretty sure she would've sputtered it out all over the carpet. "Uh, I mean. What are you doing here?" _Smooth, Lopez, really smooth. Looking like an idiot in front of all these people... you just arrived..._

"Lopez. I could ask you the same?" Quinn said and smirked. Quinn was not very surprised, since she knew that Santana would come over already, it was the only thing that Brittany had been talking about for days. Her eyes moved from Santana to Rachel who stood behind the Latina, giving the blonde a small wave in acknowledgement. Quinn turned her attention back to Santana after sending a small wave back to Rachel, "If you don't remember, I actually work with the show."

"Oh, I guess that explains it." Santana said. She remembered well enough that her former friend worked with the show. But how could she possibly forget that, not that she would confess that she remembered.

"But," Quinn continued. "If you must know. I actually live here."

Quinn's words actually made Santana choke on her own saliva. She felt anger and disappointment rise inside of her.

_Didn't Brittany say that they were going to host the party at her place? Why is Quinn fucking Fabray saying that we're at her place... What the fuck is going on? Is Brittany pulling more shit on me? She didn't trust me with her name, and now this. Unbelievably..._

"Live here?" she finally said after a few coughs, trying to sound disinterested and holding back all the questions that popped up in her head.

"Well, yes?" Santana know that Quinn is just mocking her, hell, she was the one who teached the blonde what mocking was. But it's getting to her. Making her look like a complete fool in front of all these people, none of these people know her. They only know what they have heard or read. She felt sick.

"Uhm... Santana." Brittany begins, sensing the weird atmosphere. "Quinn is actually my roommate."

Okay. Santana's mind was officially blown. The chances that her former best friend from high school, was now living together with her **crush**... in New York City... well, she didn't know exactly how many inhabitants New York had, but, a lot. The chance was not big. But it happened. And she didn't even know until now.

* * *

**A/N: So, guys. Anyone got ideas to why Quinn and Santana went from best friends to... not being friends? I kind of got an idea, but it's pretty lame...**


	9. Irresistible

**A/N: **So sorry for the delay guys. I'm graduating in like... a week, so I've been doing some last minute assignments... plus, this was kind of a hard chapter to write due to different reasons. I wasn't sure where it would lead either, but I got some ideas for the next chapter now.

I'm a little late to ask, but what are everyone's thoughts on the season finale?  
I don't actually watch Glee, so I can't really speak about it in general. Only watch my Brittana!  
Good thing though... I don't need to read so much to keep in check and I only need to watch 1 minute long clips to see every scene that I missed!  
Oh lord. That sounds awful, doesn't it?

Yeah. Enjoy this chapter.  
Thanks for the alerts everyone!  
Review guys!

**M206: **Patience, my dear!

**DeWolffHopp: **Ahh! Thank you!

* * *

**CHAPTER 9**

After the little revelation about Quinn and Britt being roommates she decided to go out on _their_ balcony for a cigarette and fresh air. The mix of smoke and fresh air was indeed a weird mix. She only smoke on rare occasions. And right now? Right now was certainly a rare occasion. Concerned blue eyes followed every step she took as she headed towards the door that would lead her out on the balcony.

After a few minutes out there she heard the door open and close, so she knew that someone was now out there with her. But she ignored the person as they stood in silence with a view over the city of New York. A few more minutes passed until the person decided to open up her mouth.

"Aren't you freezing out here?" suddenly she could feel it in the breeze that yet another winter was coming closer, she didn't notice until it was pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess it's a bit chilly. But I'll be alright." she shrugged in response, inhaling smoke and looking down at the street below her. Shivering by the mere thought of the winter that was creeping closer.

"Are you surprised?"

"A little." Santana began. "Okay. A lot." she chuckled out, knowing exactly what the person was talking about.

"Yeah, I guess I would be surprised as well."

"Yeah..." she inhaled. The smoke filling up her lungs before she let it out in a small puff.

"You know. It was never meant to be like this." Santana shifted her eyes to her right, seeing the woman stand there with slumped shoulders, looking out over the city.

"I know."

"How did we get here? We used to be such good friends..." the blonde sighed as she continued to stare out over the buildings.

"I really don't know, Quinn." she shook her head and sent her former best friend a tight lipped smile, which was returned.

She didn't even remember the last time she would have had a normal conversation with Quinn. It had been years since the last time. Even before they lost all connection they didn't really have normal conversations, it was usually a lot of yelling and a lot of blaming. Not in a million years did she expect herself to ever have a conversation with the former Cheerio again.

Her friends bossy, and slightly manipulative demeanor, which she was used to from high school, was gone. This was a more grown up version of Quinn Fabray standing next to her in the cold Autumn night. It shouldn't be so surprising though. They were older and both of them had matured through the years.

Her and Quinn had always competed when they were younger. Who was the most popular, who had the hottest partner, best grades, most expensive clothes, nicest cars... but that's what brought them closer. They had been friends since kindergarden, inseparable since the moment they said 'hello' in the sandlot.

Right now, Santana didn't even remember what had made them lose all the contact between them, what it was that made them so upset with each other. Probably something tiny, something stupid like... who got the most friends on Facebook.

When Santana left Lima all those years ago with Rachel, she didn't even say good bye to her friend. She was too stubborn and had too much pride to give in after their months of silence. Thinking back now, she knew that she had been acting like a douche for all these years. Never wanting to be the first one to give in and contact her old friend. But Quinn was the same, and she had kind of accepted that by now, that she had too much pride for her own good as well.

But to be completely honest, she had never stopped caring about Quinn. She tried to keep herself updated through their friends in common. Sneaking in questions about her, like 'Have you heard from Quinn lately' and 'What's Fabray up to these days'. If something major would've happened to the blonde the past years she would never forgive herself for missing out on important parts in her life.

"We should go back inside. The show is starting in ten." Quinn mumbled as she headed for the door.

"You know," Santana began, which caused Quinn stop in her tracks. "I never stopped caring about you."

"I know." the blonde smiled. "I never stopped either."

With those words, they stood together in silence for a few moments before they headed inside.

Feeling slightly relieved that, maybe, maybe things with Quinn could get back like it was when they were younger.

* * *

Meanwhile, during the Latina's smoking break Brittany decided to get to know Santana's friends a little more.

After realizing that Mercedes was a super cool lady with one crazy personality she knew that she'd like her.

Mercedes told her that she had spoken to her before, during their panel interview a few weeks prior. So Brittany put the pieces together and she understood why she had recognized the woman when she arrived at the door.

Brittany always found it easy to envelope into conversations with new people, but she found it extremely easy to talk to Mercedes and Rachel.

She learnt that Rachel tried to become a Broadway singer. That's when she decided to introduced Kurt Hummel to the short brunette. Apparently the two had been speaking over the phone before, which came as a surprise for Brittany. Based on the squeals that came out of Rachel, the short woman seemed pleasant to meet Kurt in person and she could hear them from afar, enveloping in yet another conversation about musicals, this time which Streisand musical that was the best.

She excused herself and decided to head out to the balcony where she knew that a certain brunette would be. As she headed for the door that would lead her out she caught a glimpse of Sam's blonde hair walking over to where she had just left Mercedes and she smiled knowingly as she heard him introduce himself with his mandatory introduction to every girl he was interested in. "I'm Sam. Sam I am." usually followed by a smirk.

As she got closer to the door she could hear two faint voices. She recognized them immediately as Santana's and Quinn's.

She didn't want to eavesdrop, but she really couldn't help herself now. She knew that the two women on the balcony had been close friends in the past, but she never knew what made them lose all the contact.

So she listened to their conversation behind the door. Surprised that they didn't notice her standing there.

Nothing caught her interest in their light conversation and she could hear that they were about to head inside again, so she hurried to the couch where the rest of the group were already waiting for the show to start.

* * *

Watching Fashion Lies Everywhere with the cast beat the crap out of a bunch of Santana's past experiences. It was something out of the ordinary. Her and Rachel's Tuesday evenings were nothing compared to this crazy party.

It was not often that the whole cast was seen together on the actual show, since you got to follow their different lives separately and each episode revolved around certain topics. But hanging with them in real life, showed that they were actually really close to each other.

They all laughed together, cuddled on the couch and just hung out. They mocked each other, sure. But anyone could see that these guys enjoyed each other's company.

Maybe they reminded her a bit about her and Berry's so-called friendship. Minus the cuddling, because that, that would never happen.

However, Santana found it very weird that Artie didn't sit next to Brittany, but instead he sat cuddled up with that rich girl, Sugar. They sat so close you could almost believe that they were one. Brittany seemed unfazed though as she let her own eyes roam over Brittany's body in the sitting position.

She sat with her legs bent and her arms hugging tightly around them as her head was resting on the knees. Santana definitely found the blonde mesmerizing as she looked at the other woman who sat across her, laughing at something Sam just said on the show.

* * *

When the episode ended it was decided that they would do some karaoke. Unfortunately, that was something she had grown very used to the past years. She did like karaoke though, but it wasn't like she was going to admit that out loud. Living with a musical performer had a lot of downsides. And honestly? She didn't know any good things about living with Rachel except that she always could harass her with her vicious words and still know that she would never leave her side.

The dreadful vocal exercises in the morning, the vocal class after lunch, the karaoke sing-a-longs whenever the singer brought home her musical friends and not to forget mentioning the random singing and acting burst outs. Yeah. No. You never knew what would happen in the Lopez-Berry residence.

"Yo, Santana! Your turn!" Artie shouted as he tried to hand over the microphone to her.

"No." she said, waving away the object.

"Oh, come on Satan. I know you love some karaoke!" Mercedes said and punched her friend lightly on the arm. All the others chimed in with 'come on' and 'do it'.

"Fine, Wheezy." Santana said bitterly as she snatched the microphone out of Artie's hand. "I don't know what to sing though."

Just then Brittany walked in from the kitchen area and Santana's eyes met those reassuring blue eyes that she had been longing to meet for so long.

"What about '_Love You Like a Lovesong_' by Selena Gomez." Brittany said as she got closer, smirking towards Santana.

"Girl, you better be kidding? Our Satan only does soul. Don't you got some Adele or Winehouse?"

"You need to shut it, Wheezy. I can do Selena Gomez too!" she replied a little too excitedly and a few from the group began to giggle at her outburst.

"Oh really now. Isn't she a bit young for you to 'do'?" Brittany said and winked towards the Latina who was all flustered now. _This weird flirting has to come to an end..._

"Fine then. I'll do Adele instead." she said and smirked back at Brittany. It was like they were the only one who existed right now. "What do you got?" Santana continued as she stared straight into those blue eyes. She was not going to budge. That was until she caught a glimpse of Brittany flicking out her tongue to wet her lips. Their gaze broke and Santana couldn't take her eyes away from Brittany's thin lips, but yet they looked so delicious. _Gotta stop staring at those lips. Pronto_.

"We got," Brittany began, taking a long pause. Her cheeks now had a tint of pink as she must have noticed Santana looking at her lips. "What do we got, honey?" she said as she smirked down at the Latina who sat on the couch a few feet away. Santana had just one question on her mind. _What the hell was going on? One second she's flirting with me, the next she's 'honey'-ing her boyfriend_...

"Uhm." Artie looked between his girlfriend and Santana, not really knowing what was going on between the two. "We got most of her songs I think." he said as he flicked through the song menu on the screen.

"Quinn, remember senior year when Santana did that divine mash-up of 'Rumour Has It' and 'Someone Like You'?"

"Yeah, it was probably Santana's best performance back in the day." Quinn said honestly as she turned her face to Santana, a smile on her lips. "And how could I ever forget that! That was right before she slapped Finn in the face too!" Quinn giggled at the memory before earning a slap on the arm from Rachel.

"Well, I think Santana's slap was uncalled for. And violence never solve anything." Rachel said matter-of-factly.

"Hey! Why did _you_ just hit me? Crazy choir woman with double standards!" Quinn's words made everyone laugh. This was one hell of a night and it was far from over.

"Stop the violence!" Brittany exclaimed while giggling.

"Yeah, Britt and Rachel are right. Violence doesn't solve anything." Joe said after a few moments.

"And the unicorn and Teen Jesus has spoken!"

* * *

_Close enough to start a war_

_All that I have is on the floor_

_God only knows what we're fighting for_

_All that I say, you always say more_

_I can't keep up with your turning tables_

_Under your thumb, I can't breathe_

_So I won't let you close enough to hurt me_

_No, I won't ask you, you to just desert me_

_I can't give you, what you think you give me_

_It's time to say goodbye_

_To turning tables, to turning tables..._

Santana had decided upon singing '_Turning Tables_' by Adele. The song was a few years old, but she had never heard of it before. Apparently it was a classic if you asked Santana.

It was a beautiful song. She dud recognize the melody when the background music began though.

Santana definitely knew how to sing. Her slow movements along with the songs lyrics and those plump lips forming the words.

Brittany couldn't tear her eyes away from the breathtaking woman in front of her. She could feel her own heartbeat raise as she listened to the strong voice of the Latina who now stood in front of her as she herself sat on the floor.

She had never expected the brunette's voice to sound this way when she sang, well, she didn't have any expectations on Santana's singing abilities prior to this either, but she should've expected that Santana was amazing at everything she did.

If it weren't because of the fact that Santana was the most talented photographer out there, she was sure that Santana could've become a successful singer if she had wanted to.

"Excuse me. I think I'm going up to change into something more comfy. I'll be right back." Brittany whispered to Joe who sat next to her as she sneaked up from the floor as Santana began singing the chorus for the last time, now singing with closed eyes and with the final powerful notes leaving her mouth, just yearning to get out of her.

Brittany could hear those final words from Santana's singing fade out as she got up through the stairs. She just couldn't stay in there and listen any longer.

She had felt the urge to just jump the woman and kiss her senseless. She was sure that those lips were calling for her. But she knew she couldn't because she still had Artie, and it was too soon anyway. Plus, she didn't know for sure if Santana was interested.

* * *

In her room she turned on some music to try and relax and calm herself down. She decided to actually change into something more comfortable, plus, she had already told Joe that she would change so it would be weird to come back down without anything changed. She had noticed the way Artie stared down on her cleavage and checked out her legs. And she had also noticed those other brown orbs looking at her with something that could only be described as desire.

Her outfit had done its job so she could change to something else now.

She decided upon a pair of sweatpants and her favorite light blue tank top with a duck print on.

"Hey Britt..."

Brittany jumped up in surprise as she noticed the door open and another person in her presence. She tried to quickly cover herself up, but it was pointless since she didn't have anything to hide behind except for her arms. So there she stood, only dressed in lace lingerie with her arms trying to cover herself up as the door had swung open.

"Uhm. I'm so sorry, I didn't know. Sorry." Santana's mouth was slightly open and her eyes wide as it hit her what she had just walked in on. Brittany found the Latina beyond adorable as she stood there, chocked and flustered.

"Do you think you can turn around so I can change?" Brittany smirked towards the brunette.

"Yeah, yeah. Sure. Sorry." Santana said as she quickly turned around, feeling her face heat up and slapping herself inwardly for being a staring pervert. Instead of actually slapping herself she just fanned herself with her hand.

Brittany didn't turn around but faced Santana's back as she quickly jumped into her baggy sweats and pulled the tank top on over her head.

She couldn't help but smile as she saw the Latina fan herself with the hand.

And honestly, she had enjoyed the way that Santana had looked at her just moments ago. With her mouth open and those eyes boring into her, as if she... _wanted_... _could it... no... I want to though..._

"Was it something you wanted? I mean, since you're here?" Brittany asked curiously as she sneaked closer behind the brunette. She saw Santana itch her head, as if she was considering her answer carefully.

"Well, yeah. I needed to..." Santana stopped mid-sentence as she felt a hand on her waist.

"You can turn around now." Brittany breathed out in Santana's ear and she could see that it sent a shiver down the Latina's spine.

Santana slowly turned around. Their faces was suddenly only a few inches away from each.

They could feel each other's uneven breaths hit their faces and the only thing they could do was to stare into each others eyes like they were the only one's left on the planet. Forgetting about time and their surroundings, their friends sitting down there.

Brittany was suddenly reminded of the urge she had felt a few minutes ago. The urge. Those luscious lips pressed against hers. She took a glance down and saw that Santana was biting her lip.

"Britt..." Santana whispered.

"Uh-huh..." Brittany still looked down at those irresistible lips. She put an arm up behind the Latina, who now was locked in between the blonde's body and the door. Her body was getting closer to Santana's and there was nothing she could do to stop herself now.

"Britt..." Santana breathed out, looking up longingly at Brittany. "I want... you."

That was all Brittany needed to hear before she tilted her head and closed the final gap between them, making it non-existent. She finally felt their lips melting together as one. Two pair of eyes fluttered closed as their soft lips touched and their bodies moved up against each other with such precision like it was something they were meant to be doing together forever.

Brittany parted her lips and slowly let Santana's tongue in as they deepened the kiss, welcoming it by sucking at it lightly before it turned into a tongue duel. Small moans erupted from both women and Brittany began to stroke the brunette's cheek, trying to deepen the kiss even further.

Trembling, they broke the kiss, only to catch their breaths and stare lovingly into each other's eyes. Brittany continued to caress Santana's cheek as they closed the gap once again.

They had both felt it in that second first kiss, the feeling of euphoria.

Brittany trailed wet kisses along Santana's jawline as she pushed up the brunette against the door, her own leg was now pushing up in between Santana's, making the Latina's center grind against her knee. The moans becoming louder, but silenced by passionate kisses that both of them smiled into.

Suddenly she regretted putting those sweats on, but she didn't put much thought on that now. Only the hottest woman she'd ever met was kissing her. _Her_.

Brittany had now slung her arms around Santana's shoulders as Santana let her hands slowly roam over the soft skin underneath the tank top that Brittany was wearing. Instantly loving the touch of the smooth skin. Her hands quickly reached its destination on Brittany's back as she unclasped the bra.

"Off." she mumbled against Brittany's lips as she moved her hands down and tugged on the tank top.

Brittany quickly raised her arms for Santana to take off the top in a swift move.

"Yours too." Brittany mumbled as she tried to do the same with Santana's shirt as the Latina raised her arms like Brittany had done seconds ago. Only to realize that it was a buttoned shirt. "Why are you wearing this?" the blonde whined, a smile tugging at her lips as she pulled at Santana's shirt.

Santana began to unbutton the shirt herself before she felt Brittany's hands stopping her.

"Wh-what?" she stuttered out, meeting blue eyes. Hoping that the blonde hadn't changed her mind about... whatever it was they were about to do, with their friends sitting a floor and a few walls away. She did have an inkling of a feeling that she would love whatever would happen though.

"I'll help you. Just... look at me." Brittany whispered into Santana's ear, earning yet another shiver.

Brittany took a tiny step back, to Santana's displeasure. But she soon felt hands hover over her chest, working to get the shirt unbuttoned.

She looked straight into Brittany's darkened eyes, who looked at her seductively while she bit her lip in concentration to get up the buttons.

For each button she opened, she leaned in for a quick peck on Santana's lips and for each peck, Santana smiled into Brittany's touch.

Santana held a firm grip around the blonde's waist as she rubbed her thumbs over the smooth skin.

Soon enough Santana's shirt was off and she pantsed Brittany's sweats off. The surprise was evident on Brittany's face, but the blonde just unbuttoned Santana's pants and made her get out of them. Soon both of them were giggling into each others necks, holding each other tightly as they only stood in their underwear. Brittany's bra still hanging loosely on her shoulders but barely covering her breasts.

Brittany once again took a tiny step away from Santana as she let her bra slide down her arms and down to the floor.

Santana's breath hitched as she looked at the blonde in awe, who now only stood in a thong right in front of her.

She remembered Brittany being gorgeous, but this...

Santana had never seen anything more beautiful in her whole life, and she had seen a lot of beautiful women and things. But this? She let her eyes roam from Brittany's feet with her painted toenails, to those long model legs of hers, the small strip of blonde hair that could be seen through the black lace thong, up to her toned stomach. Then those perky breasts with the most fantastic nipples, her chest heaving quickly due to the erratic breath. Brittany's facial structure and those deep blue, cat like eyes. The long, blonde hair flowing down her shoulders, almost covering those amazing breasts, but they didn't. This woman was really something out of the ordinary.

Santana quickly unclasped her own bra and threw it to the floor.

For a few moments they only stood there. A small gap between them with eyes roaming over the body in front of them, taking in as much as possible.

She had accidentally backed into the door, so her body was now pressed up against it again. After a while Santana moved her hands to once again hold a firm grip around Brittany's waist, pulling the taller woman closer as they leaned in for another searing kiss.

Her hands began to explore Brittany's body. Moving to the backside of her, only to grab Brittany's perfectly shaped ass. Squeezing the cheeks as Brittany went wild with sloppy kisses on her neck. She playfully slapped them, earning a load moan followed by a giggle from Brittany.

She continued to keep her left hand on Brittany's bum as she moved the other to touch Brittany's firm breasts. Feeling the right one up. They were small, but they fit perfectly in the palms of her hands. She felt how Brittany's right nipple turned hard under her touch and she slowly kneaded and tweaked the hardened nub to keep it erect.

Meanwhile, Brittany moved her leg up between Santana's legs once again and could now feel the wet spot that had formed in Santana's panties and she decided to rock her own body back and forth against the brunette's core, creating a little friction for the Latina. She connected her lips with Santana's neck and gently sucked on her pulse point.

She could also feel the wet spot in her own thong, but she had more important things to do than to care for herself right now...

"Britt." Santana croaked out in a pleasurable moan as she kept her eyes shut, only concentrating on the feeling of the rubbing core against Brittany's leg and the feeling of the blonde sucking and licking on her neck. "Britt."

Those moans made Brittany stop. Her lips leaving Santana's neck with a loud "smack" and her leg moving away from the warm, wet core between the Latina's legs.

Santana didn't get enough time to think what was going on before she was dragged to the queen sized bed by Brittany who had linked her pinkie with hers and she felt all fuzzy inside when as looked down at their pinkies.

"San." Brittany whispered after laying herself down on the bed, dragging a more than willingly Santana down with her.

Santana didn't do anything though. She just laid there, looking at Brittany.

"Santana?" Brittany asked, a bit worried that she might have done something wrong. "What's the matter?" This however, made Santana smile widely.

"Nothing." she began. "You're just so," she really had no idea how to describe Brittany. "I don't know. Beautiful just isn't enough." she said as she leaned in to stroke Brittany's cheek and kiss her slowly.

Brittany felt her face flush as she let Santana's words sink in. '_Beautiful just isn't enough_'. She cupped Santana's cheek and kissed back, slowly.

Santana moved so she now was straddling Brittany. Both of them still wore their, now, soaked underwear.

Santana nuzzled her face into the crook of Brittany. "Take these off." she mumbled against Brittany's ear, biting down on her earlobe, earning a moan from the blonde. At the same time, she tugged on the hem of Brittany's thong.

Brittany did however not make an effort to take them off, instead she just smirked at Santana.

"Make me."

Santana had no idea what she meant. But she had to feel more of Brittany.

Instead of taking them of completely she moved them to the side so she could feel the wetness on her fingers. But the moment she touched the slick folds, Brittany hit her hand away, the smirk still grazing her face.

"What?" Santana exclaimed, slightly annoyed. She was just about to get down to what she really wanted - please Brittany, and Brittany just hit her hand away.

"Take." Brittany breathed out as she tugged on Santana's panties with both hands. "Them." tugging a little harder now, putting a lot more pressure between Santana's legs as the brunette let out an unexpected moan. It almost sounded like her underwear would rip too. "Off." they did. Brittany ripped her panties with both of her hands. Her whole body was quivering. _Brittany fucking ruined my underwear_. A mischievous grin quickly took over Brittany's face as she dangled with the two pieces of wet fabric in front of their faces.

Santana felt even more aroused as she took in the sight of Brittany laying underneath her, inhaling extra deep as she held the wet fabric in front of her. Inhaling the smell of _her_. She could practically feel herself dripping by now.

Santana knew exactly what Brittany had meant with ripping her panties. She wanted her thong to undergo the same treatment. She immediately began tugging on the black thong that still was covering, well, barely covering, Brittany's most intimate parts. After a few seconds she could hear the mesh material beginning to rip as well and Brittany let out moan after moan as Santana slid the lace material back and forth between Brittany's folds, letting the fabric rub against her clit.

"Tease." Brittany moaned out as she reached for Santana to lean down and capture her lips in hers as the brunette continued to slowly rip the material and drag it to make friction. Brittany let her hand move down along Santana's body. Coming closer to the brunette's dripping core.

"Mhm. You know it, babe." Santana mumbled against swelled lips.

The black thong soon hit the floor along with Santana's. Ready to be thrown into the garbage later that night. But not now.

Santana moved up to straddle Brittany. She let out a moan as she felt her own wetness all over Brittany's leg as she sat down.

"San. You're so wet..." Brittany looked in awe at her leg that Santana was straddling.

She moved her hands to rest on Santana's hips and she moved the smaller girl, letting her grind her leg once again.

"Wait." Santana said, as if she'd just woken up from deep sleep. Something finally dawning upon her sense. She realized what they were doing. This was something she had done so many times before, but this time it was so different. It felt so different and it was so different.

She tried to slow down the grinding and her ragged breath, but Brittany continued to rock her. "Britt." she said with more power and lifted herself up a few inches, away from Brittany's leg. The blonde gave her a quizzical look before she asked what was on her mind.

"I don't want us to do something we might regret." Brittany still gave her a confused look.

"What do you mean?" Brittany said, a pout forming as she loosened her grip around Santana's waist.

"I mean," Santana began, taking a deep breath, still hovering above Brittany's leg. Not really understanding why she even interrupted what they were doing in the first place. This felt good, she really wanted this. But there was something nagging her. "Your boyfriend is down _there_." she said, pointing down, letting out a deep, disappointed groan.

"I have told you about him and what he has done to me."

"So? This is just..." she wasn't sure if she wanted to say the word. "This is just a way for you to get revenge?" Santana said, hurt lacing her words, and shook her head before she took a final glance at the blonde beneath her before jumping off the bed. She didn't want to hear, she didn't need to hear the words leave the blonde's mouth. She left a naked and stunned blonde alone on the bed.

Brittany stayed silent as she watched the Latina pick up her clothes and the ruined underwear. She could feel the arousal slowly disappear, the hurt taking over her. She was close to tears, but right now she had to be stronger. She guessed that Santana had a point. She did have Artie.  
But how could Santana even believe that this was about revenge...  
She had no idea what to tell the brunette, other than that she was so wrong. Because this wasn't about revenge. Not at all, never had it been about revenge and never would it be. It wasn't even to make her boyfriend jealous.  
Maybe she was just selfish for wanting, feeling, something for this beautiful woman, currently getting dressed in front of her.

"Who the _hell_ do you think you are?" Brittany finally shouted after the brunette. A few tears rolling down her cheeks when she saw Santana open the door to leave the room. She saw Santana flinch at her words, but the Latina still decided to walk out on her...

* * *

**A/N: Uh-oh! More trouble!  
****WHY CAN'T THEY JUST BE TOGETHER ALREADY! :'(  
They were so close to just... uhhh, Santana!**


	10. Just a coward

**A/N:** First of all I want to say sorry for this chapter, which I've been super slow to write (but I have reasons!) and it's shorter than usual. I just didn't want you all to wait longer.

Secondly, thanks for all the reviews and alerts. I always take what y'all review with into consideration. So thank you!

I do however have a question. I wouldn't mind a lot of Artie bashing, and some of you don't seem to mind it either (I laugh out loud every time someone reviews something about him!)... but what would the majority of you want? I think it won't be much of a spoiler to say that Brittany will dump Artie eventually. But would y'all want something super extra mega mean? Or something plain mean? Or something basic?

Thirdly. I have finally graduated! (My reason to why I haven't had the time to write) Crazy! I don't have a job either, so that sucks. But I will work with portfolios and stuff to fill it with this summer, so hopefully I'll get something to do soon enough. I'm super picky when it comes to jobs, and education. Kudos to all of you who starts Uni/College right after high school.

But. This also means that I, hopefully, will be able to write more on this story! (:

**Mystia45:** You know what they saaaay! It's all about the teasing and not about the pleasing!

**vikstar80:** ^. ;) I'm glad you're back! Hope you enjoyed your vacation! You might be onto something here...

**gleegasmic:**Thanks for your input! You just gave me an idea on how to continue with this! Gracias! (:

* * *

**CHAPTER 10**

She didn't want to take a cab back home, alone, like a loser. Maybe she was a loser, but that didn't mean that she had to live up to it. She may be upset and angry at the moment, but that didn't mean that she would also hurt her pride in the fall. But she also felt something that she only had felt once before. Regret.

She sat alone in silence as her two friends chatted away animatedly. The karaoke singing stopped while she had been upstairs and currently, Rachel spoke with that baby face, Kurt. While Mercedes hung out with fish lips.

It was obvious that trouty mouth was flirting with her friend, she probably would've thought how much of a better person Mercedes deserved, but right now... she could only think of a blonde who deserved so much better.

Right across the room, in a corner by some bookshelves, Artie and Sugar stood, a little bit too close and a little bit too touchy.

She watched as Artie leaned closer to whisper something in Sugar's ear. Must've been something really funny since she giggled and slapped him jokingly over his chest as if to say 'oh, stop it'.

She wanted to go over there and slap him in the face instead of the chest, because he had what she... well... wanted... and he didn't appreciate what he already had. But she couldn't do that, not here, not now. Brittany wouldn't like that.

Brittany hadn't come back down since Santana ran out on her almost fifteen minutes ago, and she couldn't blame the woman. The moment she walked out of Brittany's room she wanted to run back inside again, she wanted to wrap her arms and snuggle close to Brittany and tell her how sorry she was. The hurt look upon the blonde's face the minute before she walked out didn't go unnoticed by Santana, who felt her heart clench with hurt as well.

She knew she had been unfair for not even staying and listened to what Brittany had to say, but perhaps the truth would hurt too much.

She had ruined it all, she ruined something she didn't even have from the start. _Stupid, stupid, stupid..._

While Santana sat in the living room, inwardly slapping herself, Brittany sat on the bed in her room with her head resting in the palms of her hands. Thinking.

She was dressed in her sleepwear now. Not wanting, nor having the power to face a certain brunette downstairs. On the other hand, she didn't know if Santana was still there or if she had left already. But she didn't want to risk anything.

Santana's words had stung. They were half true. She had Artie, yes. But did she really want to be with him? She was confused. But she was sure that this definitely wasn't revenge.

This was so not what she had planned all those months prior to this evening...

* * *

Santana didn't see Brittany again that evening. Sam, who visited Brittany at her room before they left, told everyone that she was too tired to come back down to say goodbye, and that she was sorry for being rude to not do so. Although, Santana knew that that was a straight up lie.

As Santana got home she felt like another person. Rachel noticed the sudden change as well.

Santana's facial expression was a lot softer than usual, she looked more vulnerable, as if her strong wall around her had vanished.

She didn't want to talk about the evening now though. The night had been so amazing until she ruined everything with her stupid words.

The next morning she would get a new phone number. She was not in the mood for business calls and just wanted to rest for the next few weeks.

* * *

**THREE WEEKS LATER**

"Hello?" Santana answered her phone. She didn't recognize the number, but she was expecting a call from some Italian magazine.

"Santana." she heard the woman on the other side breathe out in relief. Santana recognized this voice.

"Brittany?" she said, a little shocked to hear the blonde speak to her for the first time in almost a month.

"How are you?"

"Mhm... I'm alright." Santana smiled at herself. _I feel great now when you called..._

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." she replied quickly. "You?"

"I've been better." Brittany mumbled.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Santana said honestly before continuing. "Why are you calling?" She didn't want to sound rude, but as she heard herself utter the words she knew that 'rude' was the only way to describe herself right now.

"Well. You never called me." Santana could almost see that sad small pout on Brittany's face as the blonde spoke. It hurt and she felt really bad.

"Sorry..." Santana mumbled, not really one to excuse herself. But there was something about Brittany that made her weaker, but at the same time she felt stronger... She had no idea why though. It was like the blonde had some power over her emotions.

"Why didn't you call?" Brittany said, voice stronger than normal, which caught Santana by surprise.

"I," she gulped, not knowing how to explain this. She decided to go for the honest path. "I didn't want to hurt you more than I already did."

"Hah!" Brittany let out a loud sarcastic laugh. "You think that's the way to do it then? Change your phone numbers and ignore me completely?" Santana thought she could hear sadness in the sarcastic tone that Brittany was throwing her way.

"That's not... but now when you..."

"Yeah, it sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?" Brittany said, still sad, but calmer this time. "You know, Santana. You're just a coward. A _coward_!"

"What!" she exclaimed. Santana Lopez may be a lot of things, but coward? That was not something she was. Plus, she didn't even change her numbers because of Brittany... at least not only because of Brittany.

"But I _really_ like you and I've missed you." she could hear Brittany take a deep breath. "_So much._" Brittany whispered barely audible, more to herself, but Santana could hear. "Hearing your voice just..." now Brittany sniffled, the line was silent for a moment, the only noise being quiet sniffling. "Sorry Santana." Brittany sobbed._ Brittany was crying? Oh My..._

_Beep beep beep... _The line went dead.

It's quite surprising, but never in her life had someone ended an unfinished phone conversation with her. It was just something you never did towards a Lopez.

But Brittany... she had to do something. Brittany had told her how she had missed her, that she liked her. No one, except for her mum, had ever told her that. No one likes a bitch and no one dared to be so honest with her, except for her old friends. '_You're a coward_' was echoing through her head. Maybe it was true...

* * *

Brittany was walking around in her apartment like a zombie, a newly showered zombie.

It had been two days since she finally found Santana's new phone number, well, found... she made Quinn ask Rachel about it. She had no idea why she didn't think of that earlier, or why her friend didn't offer earlier. Ever since the call she had been walking around in a half daze.

Santana still hadn't gotten back to her. The fact that she began to cry before she even finished was not one of her proudest moments.

She was walking towards her phone to see if she had missed any calls or got any new text messages, when the phone beeped that she got a new text.

She walked over, her mouth dropping and her hands getting clammy as she saw who it was from. _Santana_.

The curiosity took the best of her and she opened the text.

'I think _we need to talk. Meet me by the fountain in Central Park at 9 tonight. Please? I'll be waiting.'_

* * *

She had no idea if Brittany would show up tonight. But she hoped she would. She didn't get a reply on the text she had sent a few hours ago. Maybe the blonde hadn't even seen it.

She was still going to wait though. She wanted, needed, a second chance to befriend Brittany.

Santana had come to the conclusion that if Brittany would still be with that douche of a boyfriend, she would be content with just being friends with Brittany. Because she knew that she needed her in her life somehow.

The time was ticking and Brittany was nowhere to be seen. She stayed positive that Brittany would come, even though she began to feel more and more nervous as the minutes passed.

She paced back and fourth in front of the fountain for an hour and by 10PM she was close to give up. But she decided to wait for another half hour and if Brittany didn't show up by then, she would leave and give up on the girl.

Every time she saw a tall blonde walk around closely in the park she thought it was the blonde she was hoping for. But no such luck.

Santana waited and waited, she checked her phone... nothing. Brittany wasn't there and she hadn't sent her a text or call to tell her that she wouldn't make it.

She felt her heart hurt as she began to walk away from the fountain. Walking faster and faster, until she ran. She felt tears blur her vision as she ran away into the night.

* * *

Around 8.55PM Brittany jumped out of the yellow cab that had brought her to Central Park.

She was thrilled to meet Santana again, but she was also extremely nervous. She had so much to explain.

As she got closer to the fountain she realized that Santana wasn't there yet. She had expected Santana to be waiting for her at least twenty minutes before their set time, so it was quite surprising to not see her over there yet. After all, it was just five minutes left.

The time went agonizingly slow as Brittany sat by the foot of the fountain. Waiting. It was starting to get cold and dark outside and it was surprisingly few people out this time of the evening.

She considered sending Santana a text to ask where she was, but she decided upon waiting for another few minutes.

However, she did something that she should've done earlier. She took a glance on her watch. _4.55... or 11.20... 11.20?_

Before she could say 'shit' she had her phone in her hand and quickly found Santana's number to dial.

'_You have reached Santana Lopez's telephone, I can't pick up right now. Photography requests goes to my assistant, Rachel Berry. But do leave a message after the beep if you're looking for me and I'll get back to you as soon as possible! BEEP!_'

Brittany smiled at Santana's business like tone, exactly the way she had spoken in the studio last month. Then she realized that she had to say something after the beep.

"Santana. It's Britt. I'm so sorry about tonight. I'm waiting for you right now..." Brittany took a deep breath. "Two hours too late. But please don't be mad at me San." she said pleadingly. "No one taught me how to read a watch. But I want you to know that I came here tonight, and that I really wanted to see your beaut..." she stopped herself. Was it too much to say that she was beautiful, even though Santana really was beautiful? Probably. "And I really wanted to see you. Please call me back when you hear this." Brittany bit her lip nervously, hoping that Santana really would call back later. "Bye."

* * *

Santana dropped dead onto her own bed around 5AM. She spent most of the night at a bar close to her apartment, drinking the night and her sorrows away.

As she slumped down on her bed she found her phone in her camera bag and took it out to see if she had missed anything. Three texts and two missed calls.

Deciding upon checking the calls first she saw that one was from Berry and one from Brittany. Her head hurt just seeing the name on her screen.

Not thinking of what Brittany had wanted she decided to look through the new text messages. Two from Rachel and one voicemail.

A voicemail who most likely was from Berry. She was not in a state to listen or reply to any of the messages that was sent to her. Instead, she immediately fell asleep.

* * *

Twelve hours later Santana wiped some drool off of her face as she slowly opened her eyes. It was over 5PM. _Fuck..._

Luckily she didn't have any work booked for the day or the rest of the week, but she still slept in way too late for her own liking.

She looked down at her phone that she, apparently, fell asleep with. A voice mail was open. But she had no memory of listening to it.

She pressed the call button to listen.

"Oh, that was the beep?" she could hear a voice say, a voice that she always would recognize. "Santana. It's Britt. I'm so sorry about tonight. I'm waiting for you right now..." she could hear Brittany inhale deeply before continuing. "Two hours too late. But please don't be mad at me San." she heard Brittany say pleadingly. She felt her heart ache, because how could she really-really be mad at this sweet woman. "No one taught me how to read a watch. But I want you to know that I came here tonight, and that I really wanted to see your beaut..." Santana barely caught the word, but she did. _Beautiful, Brittany thinks I'm beautiful? _She felt a smile form on her lips. "And I really wanted to see you. Please call me back when you hear this. Bye."

She got the message at 11.25PM the night before. If she would've waited just a little longer by the fountain she would've met the blonde and she wouldn't have gotten this drunk. At least not because of a stupid reason like this. Then she wouldn't feel like shit today either. But it was too late for regrets now.

She decided to get dressed, grab something to eat and then call Brittany.

* * *

"Hi Britt, it's Sant..."

"I'm soooo sorry San. Please don't be mad at me? I don't even know how to check what time it is. I'm so stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid..."

"Britt! Stop rambling." Santana giggled. _Only Britt can make me giggle..._ This made Brittany stop her talking. "I'm not mad and you're not stupid." However, she found Brittany's rambling extremely adorable, even though she didn't agree with what she said. _I'm the one that's stupid_.

"Sorry."

"Stop excusing yourself, Britt. You have done nothing wrong, it's not your fault that you got there too late. Plus, it was my fault to meet you there in the first place anyway..." Santana reassured.

"No it was..."

"Sooo... I was thinking, maybe, you know..." Santana began in a flirtatious tone.

"I know...?" Brittany tried to fill in. "I know that it's sunny outside today?" Brittany tried to lighten the mood, more for herself than for Santana, though. The Latina began to laugh hysterically. After everything that had... or maybe hadn't, transpired between them the past month and last night, she laughed... hysterically.

"Yeah, that too." She replied after the laughter died out. "I was thinking that maybe we could meet today instead? I come by your place and pick you up?"

"Yeah?" Santana could see in front of her as Brittany smiled and bit her lip as she spoke into the phone.

"Yeah." Santana replied, smiling. "Let's say, in two hours? That would be at 8, or..." Santana glanced down at her watch. "11.40, okay?".

"Thank you." Brittany giggled. "I'll see you later, San."

"Later, Britt."

Santana hung up the phone with a goofy grin plastered over her face. Luckily Rachel didn't see that as she heard her roommate pass on the other side of her closed door.

* * *

Brittany was dressed and ready. The moment Santana hung up she had hurried over to her wardrobe to pick out something nice to wear. She knew that she didn't need to impress the Latina, but she still wanted to dress nicely. Not having Quinn home this week meant that she practically could prance around naked.

She settled for a pair of black skinny jeans and a slim t-shirt with a purple hoodie on top. To that she would wear a pair of nice wedges. Making her look freakishly tall.

For an hour she had tried to figure out how her new laptop worked. She had never been one for gadgets and computers, but she had to learn it some day, she reasoned, as she tried to use some keyboard shortcuts.

Indeed. Two hours after their ended call, the doorbell rang at the Fabray-Pierce household and she closed her laptop and scurried over to open the door, her jacket in one hand so she could lock and leave.

As she opened the door a flash went off, causing her to see tiny stars. As the stars disappeared from her sight she spotted the smiling Santana in front of her, an old polaroid camera in one hand and her other hand holding a single, orange, calla lily.

"Sorry." Santana said. "Guess I should've bought a bouquet. I know I must look silly holding this tiny flower." Santana gestured with the hand holding the flower.

"No. It's not silly!" Brittany exclaimed. "Is it," she swallowed hard and looked between the flower and Santana's eyes. "Is it for me?" she asked sheepishly.

"Of course it's for you! Who else? Quinn? Don't think so!" Santana said jokingly as she held the flower forward for Brittany to take.

"Thanks." Brittany took the flower and felt her body get hotter and her cheeks get warmer. "It's really pretty." She said as she looked straight into Santana's eyes, not really talking about the flower... even though it was a nice flower, it was nothing compared to the woman in front of her. She reached forward to wrap her arms around Santana in a hug as she said a proper 'hello' to the brunette, almost crushing the calla between them. This was the first time she'd ever gotten flowers, or in this case _a_ flower, from someone. Except for that one time when Quinn got her a cactus as a 'moving together' gift. It was a great idea, until her curiosity took over and she touched one of the spines to see if it'd hurt. It did.

"Shall we go?" Brittany said as she smiled and pointed her arm dramatically towards the stairs, offering Santana to walk in front of her after she locked the door and left the flower inside in a glass vase filled with water. _Being chivalrous never hurt, and I'm not going to check out her behind... maybe a quick peek? _Well, she had no idea where they were going anyway. One peek wouldn't hurt...

* * *

**A/N: I know that the whole time mess up with Britt is a bit weird. The minute hand move faster than the hour hand, obviously, so I'm not even sure if it's possible to look wrong that way. Anyway. It's Glee, it doesn't need to make any sense. (;**


	11. Kick off

**A/N: **Thanks for all the alerts, y'all! I had a flow with this chapter. I just typed and typed. Usually I re-type and change a lot throughout the week. But since I was super slow with the last two chapters, I thought I'd be super quick with this, therefore, it's written in like... a day. It doesn't mean that it's bad though?  
I don't know if I dare to say that this is my personal favorite, but it definitely got some cute moments to like! I just hope it doesn't seem too rushed. I hope you will enjoy this, because there's ooooonly Brittana here. And more dialogue than ever between your favorite ladies!  
Hopefully a nice change from the last chapter which was like mood swings all over the place...

I have a question though.  
When would you like to see the story to end? When they get together, or do you want them to establish something, think of the future… etc?  
I'm just asking. It's not ending yet, obviously. But it'd be nice to know so I can get some further ideas. It's up to you, all!

Lastly. Have y'all seen that picture of HeYa on vacation in Mexico (with their friends), that Vanessa posted on her twitter. Daaaamn…  
Heather Morris is a goddess (and yes, I ship myself with her. Any day. Everyday. Always. Sorry HeYa shippers…). Naya is a goddess too, of course.

**snixxjuice214:** A sex tape of Sugar and Artie? That's a good one! Hahaha!

**M206:** Mhm... sweet lady kisses...

**vikstar80:**Thanks for always reviewing! (: 3

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**CHAPTER 11**

To Brittany's surprise Santana had taken her to a small café close to Times Square. It wasn't the place where she could see Santana hang out during her evenings, or days. Based on the exterior, it was the opposite of glamorous. An old alley that smelled really weird, with a crooked sign above the door that said 'The Café', a ridiculous name for a café. But apparently they served the best lattes, sandwiches and cakes, and apparently they had a nice garden in the back, that would be nicely lit up with candles if they were lucky. Santana promised that the interior would be much better, at least by her standards.

As she walked in to the small coffee shop she was met by a rush of calmness. An acoustic song currently playing at a low volume in the background. Dimmed lights. The scent of something sweet, mixed with freshly made coffee, and the distinguish smell of old furniture, but it didn't smell bad. It reminded her of her old grandmother's house, who still lived in The Netherlands.

The café was very different compared to the usual New York stress, it was like everything went slower in there. Suddenly she knew why Santana liked this place. It was obvious that this was Santana's way to get away from everything.

Even though people began to recognize and approach her more often when she was out, she still didn't have a place like this where she could hide and get away. Maybe it was too early for her to have a place like that, because let's be honest, she was nowhere close to the status and fame that Santana had.

"I never took you for a café kind of person." Brittany smiled as they took a seat in the garden at the back. Santana had been right. The garden was amazing. It was a bit cold outside since the winter was coming close, but they had blankets and heating outside. Lanterns hanging over them and lit candles on every table. It was quite romantic.

"Really?" Santana took a sip of her latte and let out a content hum. These lattes could never go wrong. She wasn't sure if she wanted to know what Brittany thought of her, but the curiosity took the best of her as she continued. "What did you take me for then?" the Latina smiled, not caring that Brittany had actually judged her, she had done the same with Brittany.

"I guess I thought you only hung out at cool places, like exclusive nightclubs and celebrity yachts, you know. Flying to Italy in a private jet, only because you can. Hanging out with different model girls and sometimes even men, every night. I've read..." She wasn't supposed to tell Santana that she had read all that stuff about her, she wasn't supposed to tell her this. But she hadn't had the time to stop herself as she rambled. Her eyes slowly met Santana's, as if to see if she had said too much.

"It's fine, Britt." Santana reassured. "I think it's impossible to not have read any gossip about me, especially in this industry we're in." It wasn't cocky sounding statement, Santana just said it with sadness lacing her words. "Can I tell you a secret?" the brunette suddenly said.

"Yes?" Brittany nodded slowly, not knowing what to expect from this sudden confession.

"You're right at most of those things. _Unfortunately_." Santana said and looked down, ashamed of herself.

"Oh." Brittany felt her heart stung at the fact that all that was true. Because maybe, she had just been one of Santana's one night stands, but everything felt so different. Or was it only for her?

"But I can assure you that me being with a man is just a stupid rumor. I haven't been with a guy since high school." Santana said jokingly as she smiled once again before tasting a piece of her carrot cake.

"Yeah." It wasn't really the affirmation that Brittany wanted to hear. To Brittany, a man and a woman was just humans, equals. It didn't matter if Santana had been with a man or not, a woman or not. What mattered was that Santana had been with many people, before and probably after her. But what hurt the most was probably that she was one of those people who had fallen for Santana's charm… and that she didn't regret anything.

"This was the place where I told Rachel about my trip to Amsterdam, where I for the first time told her about this _amazing_ woman that I met." Santana said after a few moments, flushing at her own statement.

"Really? Who did you meet?" Brittany asked curiously, eyes narrowing. She wasn't usually the jealous type, but she had met Santana there, and she really didn't want to know whether or not she had been sharing the brunette with someone else that week.

"Really? Who?" Santana laughed at the blonde.

"Yeah, I'm curious." Brittany said and shrugged, trying to play it off cool.

"You, of course!" Santana exclaimed, making Brittany blush, her mouth forming an 'o' as realization hit her. "She kind of already knew of you, since she, you know, called... but she didn't know how amazing you are. Because you really are amazing. I've been talking a lot about you with her at this place."

"Really?" Brittany blushed even harder. She felt her heart beat faster and faster each second that passed.

"Yes." the Latina smiled.

"What did you talk about… when you talked about me?" Brittany gulped. She was indeed a very curious person, especially when it came to Santana.

"Uhm…" Santana never thought she would ever tell Brittany about this. This was kind of awkward. But what the hell. "Usually I just rambled on that I wish I'd find you out there. We spoke about ideas how I would get in contact with you. I thought you worked as a crew member at the Fashion Week, but no one knew who you were." Santana shrugged. "Or they didn't want me to find you…" she mumbled.

It was true. Brittany was amazing. Maybe even too good for her. She understood if some people didn't want her to find this amazing and kind human being, who sat in front of her. She could only assume what those people thought of her and her reputation. That she would break Brittany. But they didn't know that that wasn't her intentions when it came to the blue eyed blonde that had blown her mind away completely.

"But lets not talk about me now. I have so much to ask you." Santana said, suddenly a lot more serious. It broke Brittany from her thoughts.

"Yeah, I know." Brittany replied. She had pretty much expected this topic to pop up sooner or later, but that didn't mean that she was prepared to answer a lot of questions.

They sat in silence for another moment. None of them touching their cakes or drinks. They only looked at each other, waiting for the other to start talk.

Brittany wasn't one hundred percent sure that she knew what exactly it was that Santana wanted to know, therefore, she didn't open her mouth first.

"Why did you tell me your name was Quinn?" Santana began her 'interview'. It was certainly a question that Brittany had expected.

"You know, some models change their names to become more 'attractive' in the industry. I didn't need that, because, you know. My name is like Britney Spears." Brittany said as she smiled widely.

"Britt. That doesn't answer my question." Santana reached over the table and poked Brittany on her stomach.

"Okay, okay." Brittany giggled before she got quiet for a moment.

"Briiiiiitt..."

"Saaaan... it's really embarrassing." Brittany flushed.

"I don't care, Britt!"

"Fine." Brittany said and pouted.

"Hey! Your pout wont work on me anymore! I have become immune!" Santana laughed in a 'moahaha'-kind of way.

"Immune? As if!" Brittany giggled.

"Continue with the story now." Santana could feel her heart swell as she looked at the giggling blonde in front of her, but she wanted her answers.

"Yeah, yeah. Okay, so..." Brittany began. "Do you believe in fate?"

"No." Santana quickly answered.

"Why?"

"I don't know. It's ridiculous. As if everything was planned out before it even happened. Like some things are meant to be? Nah, I don't think so."

"Well, I believe in fate." Brittany pouted again.

"Stop doing that!" Santana smiled at the pouting blonde.

"Stop doing what, Santana?" Brittany pretended as if she didn't know what Santana meant.

"Pouting!" Santana almost shouted, happy that they were almost alone in the garden, only an old couple sitting on the other side of the garden. "And batting your eyelashes!" she continued as she saw that the blonde was indeed, batting her eyelashes at her.

"Why? I thought you were immune!" Brittany burst out laughing.

"Whatever." Santana mumbled. "When are you going to answer my question?" She didn't really see this conversation going anywhere, she only felt that Britt was trying to change the subject by pouting.

"Now." Brittany took yet another deep breath. "When I gave you a fake name. I... I... I hoped that you would find me, one way or another. Because it would be fate if we met again. You know?" Brittany said honestly as she stared into Santana's eyes. "As if it was meant to be." She said barely audible. "And Quinn was the first name that popped up in my head when you asked about my name, since she's my roommate." Brittany shrugged and smiled.

"You're saying that you hoped that we would run into each other again?" Santana did her best to not smile like a fool as she saw Brittany nod. "You said you moved here when you got cast for the show." Santana continued after a short moment. "But what happened to your accent? I'm pretty sure you had one when we first met."

"You mean like this?" Brittany said in a Dutch accent before smiling widely.

"Holy shit! You sound like a different person!" Santana exclaimed. "I'm bilingual, but I don't sound like a total different person."

"I know, it's pretty cool. I'm multilingual." Brittany smiled.

"You're multilingual?" Santana said. She was beyond intrigued. She knew that Brittany didn't know how to read a watch, so that she was multilingual was actually quite surprising, not that she really doubted that Brittany was smart.

"Yep. Dutch, Afrikaans, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish. And a bunch of other accents and different national varieties." Brittany said proudly.

"So that's why? You speak a lot of languages so you just decided to have a Dutch accent when you were in Amsterdam? Because you're speaking with perfect New York dialect right now."

"I actually don't know why I did it. It just came out of me, I guess." Brittany smiled. "I got a dual citizenship and have lived a third of my whole life in The Netherlands, my whole family lives there." Brittany said sadly a few seconds later.

"Do you miss them?" Santana asked as she reached over to stroke Brittany's hand. Brittany moved her hand so her palm was facing upwards, so she could interlace her hand with Santana's.

"Yeah." Brittany took a deep breath and nodded. Santana didn't really know what it felt like to miss people like that. She loved her mother, but she didn't live too far away. After her parents divorce her mother moved to the Hampton's with her sister and her husband and two kids. She was always welcome to their home.

"Maybe you should go there for a visit soon?" Santana said as she kept stroking her thumb against Brittany's hand.

"For sure. When I can afford to go." Brittany said and Santana nodded. "Anyway. Continue with the questions?" The blonde smiled. She realized that she was more than happy to answer questions, because that meant that Santana would get to know her a little better.

"Yeah, of course." Santana took a moment to collect her questions. "Did you know that you would move to New York when we met?"

"It wasn't one hundred percent sure back then, I think. People were interested in having me and there had been a lot of talk about me being a part of the cast. I was there with Kurt and actually met Quinn there for the first time. She was actually the one who was the most interested in having me for the show. I'm surprised that you didn't see her."

"Oh. Yeah." Santana nodded. "Have you lived in New York before?" This question made the blonde blush.

"I… I know that I seemed really intrigued and curious when you told me that you lived in New York City… but yes. I have lived in New York before I moved here with Quinn.

"I knew it!" Santans shouted. The old couple turned their eyes towards her. "Sorry." she mumbled towards the couple and gave them an awkward wave.

"You knew it, huh?" Brittany said teasingly, not sure if she believed the Latina or not.

"Yeah… no… But you really look like someone that I recognized!" Santana said in her defense. Brittany started to giggle at the brunette's antics. It was clear as a day that Santana was the epitome of adorable, even though she'd probably pretend that she wasn't if she'd tell her. Brittany could only assume that this Santana was someone who not many people had seen before. The laid back, non-business like and kind, version of Santana Lopez.

For a few moments they just sat there, letting the calming music in the background infect their ears. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence between them. They still held each others hands on the table. None of them wanting to let go of the soft skin and heat radiating.

They drank their tea and coffee, taking small bites of their cakes. Not wanting the moment to pass. But both knew that it had to come to an end soon.

"This cake is delicious." Santana said, making Brittany break from her thoughts and start giggling instead. Santana looked ridiculous as she tried to speak with her mouth full of cake. "Want to try it?" she said hopefully as she looked at the blonde who sat in front of her.

"Sure."

"Wait." Santana quickly said as she saw that Brittany was reaching for her own spoon with her free hand. "I'll get a piece for you." she smiled as she put a big piece of carrot cake on her own spoon and reached her hand over the table to feed Brittany with it.

Brittany looked down at the cake that Santana offered. She smiled as she met Santana's gaze, right before she took the spoon and the cake into her mouth. She slowly chewed as she tasted the cake. She nodded in approval and smiled even wider at Santana who looked lost for words as she stared at the blonde. If someone had told Santana three months ago that she would feed someone, she would've called bullshit. But here she was. Feeding Brittany with her carrot cake.

"Wait." Santana smiled. "Here." she dropped the spoon on her plate and rubbed her thumb against the corner of Brittany's mouth where she had some white icing left. "There you go." she continued as she got the icing off of Brittany's face.

Brittany was speechless. Her heart was going crazy inside of her. This woman. Santana…

Before she knew what she was doing she leaned over the table and captured Santana's lips between hers.

The Latina was caught by surprise, but in a heartbeat she began to kiss back. It was the most sincere kiss Brittany had ever shared with someone. No tongues, just soft lips brushing and moving against each other. It was slow, but it was perfect.

Brittany raised from her chair, not letting her own lips leave Santana's. She moved over and repositioned herself on the chair next to the brunette so they could sit closer, no more table blocking between them. Both of them were leaning towards each other.

She let her right hand cup Santana's face as she stroked her cheek. She let her other hand fall onto Santana's lap. This time Santana interlaced their fingers. Brittany pushed her chair closer with her foot so her knees nudged Santana's. She breathed heavy through her nose. Not wanting to break the slow kissing. She leaned in even closer, her lips pressing harder against Santana's. Almost desperately she sucked on Santana's lower lip. She shut her already closed eyes even more tight and just inhaled Santana's smell and enjoyed the taste of her lips.

After a short while they slowly pulled away from each other. Both being out of breath and faces flushing.

"Sorry." Brittany mumbled as she moved away from Santana. Still holding hands. "I got carried away."

"I'm sorry too."

"That was amazing though." Brittany bit her lip and looked away shyly.

"Yeah. It was." Santana smiled.

They sat in silence again. Only holding hands and enjoying each other's company.

"Why did you leave that day after?" Santana asked, breaking the silence, only to cause more silence.

Santana stroked her thumb over Brittany's hand, waiting for a dreading answer. Maybe Brittany hadn't been interested back then...

"I was so afraid that you would throw me out when you'd wake up. I thought you wanted me to leave." Brittany mumbled. She tried to let go of Santana's hand, but the brunette held her grip firmly.

"Why would I throw you out?" Santana said in disbelief. She had had the best night of her life, why would she want her to leave? However, deep down she already knew the answer.

"Because that's what all your lovers always said when they went to the press about their adventures with you." Brittany met brown eyes. She didn't sound disgusted or anything, just… casual. Maybe everything in the magazines weren't true, but she did have a feeling that this might be one of the things that were in fact true. "That you either pushed them away or that you had already left when they woke up." Brittany felt Santana tighten her interlaced fingers as the brunette stopped stroking her thumb. She knew that she had hit a weak spot with her words.

"Ouch." Santana feigned hurt. She understood that Brittany left first, so the blonde wouldn't be the one to be left, if it would have come to that. "I guess you're right though. But Britt…"

"No, you don't need to explain yourself." Brittany took another sip of her tea, before it would get too cold to drink.

"No. But I want to. It was more than…" Santana began, unsure of what to say. "It… I… it was so different Brittany. It _felt_ so different." She said almost desperately. She really wasn't sure what she was going to say. She didn't want to say too much if it'd scare away the blonde, again. That was the last thing she wanted to do.

"What do you mean?" Brittany raised an eyebrow before she turned her eyes away. She didn't want to get her hopes up. Santana had pretty much said what she too had felt, and still felt. She just didn't know what to expect.

"_Never_ have I felt such connection with someone as I have with you. You're special to me. You make me, just… I don't even know how to explain it, Britt." she let go of Brittany's hand. Instead of holding the blonde's hand she moved her hand to cup Brittany's cheek. "Look at me." she whispered as Brittany slowly averted her eyes from strawberry her cake, so they once again looked at each other. When their eyes finally met, Santana continued to speak. "I mean it. You're special to me. You're not like ay of those women I've been with in the past. Because that's what they are. The past."

Brittany shut her eyes close as she let Santana's words sink in and the soft touch against her cheek continue to caress her. She pressed her cheek further against Santana's rubbing thumb as to savor the moment. She enjoyed the touch, more than anything. Even though she knew deep down that she shouldn't. Not yet. She wasn't done with Artie yet. She wanted to do this the right way, but she knew that Santana probably would become upset if she'd leave now. Especially since she had initiated the amazing kiss they had shared only minutes ago.

"You know I can't do this right now." Brittany croaked out. She could only hope that Santana would understand.

"Why?" Santana returned her hand that were caressing Brittany's cheek to her own lap.

"I… Artie." Brittany couldn't even look into Santana's eyes as she spoke. In the corner of her eyes she saw Santana cringe as she said _his _name.

"You know what Brittany." Santana began, reaching forward to hold Brittany's hand again. "I'll wait for you. If you tell me you want to give this a shot." Santana pointed between them with her free hand.

"Yes, Santana. I want this." Brittany nodded feverishly. Which to Santana was an acceptable answer.

"Just let me know when you're ready to leave him." she moved their interlaced hands up to her face so she could kiss Brittany's knuckles.

Brittany let out a breath she didn't even know she had held. It was like a huge weight lifting from her chest. Not only did she know that Santana would wait for her. It was way to early to know where exactly all this would lead, but she finally knew that Santana was interested in her, and hopefully Santana knew that she was interested too._  
_Her heart and mind was racing with thoughts. Just to get the assurance that Santana would be there for her, until she would be ready... It was too much to handle. Tears began to blur her vision.

"Don't cry." Santana whispered as Brittany leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the smaller woman, Santana immediately responding by hugging her back.

"It's happy tears." Brittany whispered back as she held Santana as close as she possibly could. "Thank you."

"I…" Santana didn't even know what it was that she was trying to say. Everything had become so emotional, there was so much emotion behind their embrace. "Please, don't let me wait too long." She whispered as she pecked Brittany's cheek before letting go of the blonde.

Brittany felt like a big baby for crying in public. Even more when Santana helped her wipe the tears away. She was glad that she hadn't decided upon some heavy makeup before she left the apartment. She didn't want mascara all over her face.

She currently felt a mix of excitement and anxiety. She knew that Santana would wait for her, but at the same time she knew that she had to break someone. She already knew who. She had already decided it would be him. When it would come to Santana and Artie. It would always be him. It would always be him that she would leave.

Brittany leaned in for another reassuring hug and Santana began stroking her blonde locks as they held each other close.

"Brittany? Santana?" The both women let go of each other faster than you could say 'hi', and shuffled away so there at least was a little space between them. Both of them recognized _that_ voice. Great. _Caught_.

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**A/N: UH-OH! OH NO! Who would this beeeee?**


	12. Ladies

**A/N: I'm really sorry for keeping you chicas hanging for so long. I can't blame my writers block on anything special... I've worked with other things? Yeah, but I'm still super sorry!**

**I _just_ finished writing this, and didn't want to keep you any longer.**

**M206: **Yeah, it's nice, isn't it! (:

**vikstar80:** Whoops! Sorry for keeping you hanging!

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**CHAPTER 12**

They heard the steps coming closer to their table. They already knew who the voice belonged to, but they both looked up and met the eyes that currently were eying them suspiciously.

"What's going on?" Quinn said as she looked between Santana and Brittany. She had seen them from a distance when she called at them, but she was almost one hundred percent sure that she had seen them hugging each other just moments ago. She was sure. Her friend loved body contact by nature, especially in the form of cuddles. But her former friend? Not so into the whole hugging or cuddling deal. The state they were in was also proof that something must have conspired between her roommate and former best friend. The two sat awkwardly in their seats, a little too far away from each other, both being wide-eyed and definitely nervous.

"I could ask you the same, Fabray." Santana said smugly as she looked up at the former Cheerio. "And Berry." she smirked as she saw the shorter woman appear behind Quinn. Rachel stopped abruptly, almost colliding with Quinn's back. She quickly moved so she stood next to the blonde instead. When they walked closer to take seats, she had been too busy nibbling on her favorite hazelnut cookies to see the group in front of her.

The newly arrived women looked between each other, they suddenly mirrored the look that Santana and Brittany had had on their faces just seconds ago. Deers caught in headlight.

"I... we..." Quinn began, pointing back and fourth between herself and Rachel. "Ehum..." she nodded towards Rachel to take over with her blabbering mouth.

"We were just out on a friendly dinner, what friends do. If you must know." Rachel spoke up, but more like squeaked out.

"Oh really? Because I thought you took a few days off to visit your cousins. In Cincinnati." Now Santana raised an eyebrow. Carefully looking at the way her roommate reacted to her words. Rachel was fiddling with that hideous plaid skirt of hers, her wardrobe was filled with them, ever since the high school days. _Brittany would probably look good in it though..._ But the fiddling was a sign of nervousness, Santana knew, even though it was something she rarely got to see. It was quite amusing, because nervous was something Rachel Berry never was, or at least she didn't show it. But apparently something was making her very nervous right now...

"And I thought you were going to visit your parents in Lima..." Brittany continued as she eyed her roommate's behavior. Quinn stood with her head held high, eyes widening at Brittany's statement. She thought Brittany had been too busy sulking to register when she had told the taller blonde that she would visit her parents for a few days, but apparently Brittany had been in a state where she actually listened and remembered.

Rachel and Quinn had no idea what to say. They looked everywhere except on their friends and each other. So instead of talking about their own situation, they did what every other person would've done in their situation. Change topics.

"The weather has been pretty good today, don't you think?" Quinn said and forced one of her infamous smiles that used to have the boys crawling after her and the girls following orders like she was the Queen of McKinley, well she was, but that's not the point. It probably still worked at work. She looked up and pointed towards the dark sky, where you could only assume that the dark clouds were long gone. Because yes, it had been good weather earlier that day, if one's definition of good weather would be rainy and dark clouds everywhere.

"Definitely, hone..." Rachel nodded in agreement, suddenly blushing feverishly. "Quinn." she changed quickly, hoping that no one would've noticed her slip, but no such luck today.

"Holy shit!" Santana and Brittany exclaimed in unison, smiling at each other as they heard themselves say the same thing.

"What?" Rachel shouted, before actually realizing that she was indeed, shouting. "What did I do?" she said a lot calmer, shrugging. It was so very unlike Rachel to shrug, so Santana just smiled at how her roommate tried to disguise this.

"Oh, Rachel Barbra Berry. I know that you're an actress, but don't you play stupid now!" Santana stood up from her chair. Rachel expected a smack on her face for lying or those vicious words that she was so used to at home and from high school. But instead, Santana walked over and hugged the shorter brunette.

"Wh-wh-what?" Rachel stuttered out, more scared than ever. If it was something she never expected to happen, it was Santana hugging her at a moment like this. Santana would surely hug her before going on vacation and disappearing for weeks, but at a café, among friends? Never in her wildest imaginations did she see that coming. _Not that she saw Santana in her wildest imaginations... gross..._

"I'm so proud of you." she looked at her roommate like a loving mother would've done when their kid would've done something extraordinary. "I knew you liked berries, Berry."

"Berries?" Rachel squealed as Santana let go of her. She didn't have lots of slang words and abbreviations in her vocabulary. But surely, she did appreciate the taste of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and other berries, she was vegan after all. But she didn't see that very fitting for this conversation.

"You know, nipples?" Brittany said casually, shrugging. This made both Rachel and Quinn turn tomato red right in front of their friends, while Santana burst out laughing, both at Brittany's blunt way of saying it and the fact that Rachel and Quinn had reacted that way. The Latina was barely able to hold in the tears.

After a while Santana looked knowingly at Brittany before both of them opened their mouths, knowing exactly what the other would say.

"You were on a daaaaate..." Brittany and Santana sang together as they watched their friends faces turn even redder, which none of them thought was humanly possible. But apparently they were wrong.

"Oh God, this is priceless." Santana laughed. "Here, give me my camera, Britt." Santana continued to laugh as she waited for Brittany to give her the instant camera she brought with her. "I can't believe I'm going to waste film on this, but it's too good to be true." Santana said as the flash went off.

"Hey!" Rachel and Quinn shouted in unison as their facial expressions mirrored a mixture of horror and embarrassment.

Santana had captured a blonde and brunette, red in their faces and eyes wide. Lucky for them, the flash made them look a lot paler than what they actually were, but the blush was still showing. She then turned to Brittany and took a photo of her as well, the lit lanterns visible in the background, making it a great picture, but mostly because of the stunning woman who it portrayed. Brittany just smiled.

* * *

The four women moved a fourth chair to the triangle shaped table and sat down for a while, talking and enjoying the company of each other. It had been ages since Santana was actually out enjoying time with friends, and not being out doing anything work related.

She also found it great to still be able to converse with Quinn, it was like they were teens again and like they hadn't been away from each other for so many years. The only difference between now and then being that she and Quinn didn't make fun of Rachel. Well, when Santana tried to make fun of Rachel now, Quinn would slap her or tell her to stop and glare at her like she was about to kill someone. She didn't really care what Quinn thought, she'd mock her as well for being with Berry. But she couldn't go against what Brittany thought. Brittany showed Santana that adorable pout of hers every time she said something sarcastic towards Rachel or Quinn. She was sure that she had that power over Brittany as well, or at least she hoped...

After a few minutes of explanation and negotiation Santana and Brittany got their statement confirmed. Rachel Berry and Quinn Fabray had indeed been out on a date this lovely evening, even though they tried to deny it by calling it a casual dinner between two friends, which might have included handholding and sweet lady kisses for dessert. Apparently it hadn't been their first date either. _Those sneaky queers..._

The fact that Rachel was dating a girl didn't come as a huge surprise to Santana. Hell, she had even contemplated trying to hook up some of her model friends after her and Finn broke it off. She didn't do it though, she had never found anyone that fit the short woman's height, not that it should've mattered since Finn was a giant. But Quinn? She would never have guessed that one liking the ladies. If she remembered correctly, Quinn had never been a big fan of her hooking up with girls in high school, not even drunken kisses at parties. She just remembered the blonde staring at her repulsively. But maybe she had seen it all wrong. Maybe Quinn had been jealous at her for being able to kiss anyone and everyone, while she was stuck with Frankenteen, until Rachel stole him that is.

Rachel and Quinn didn't go into detail on how the two reconnected, and on a whole other level too. They just said that they clicked. But the long story was for another day.

The lovey-dovey couple was very suspicious as to what Brittany and Santana were up too. They both knew what Santana wanted, but they had no clue if Santana's want was answered by Brittany. They could however see how well they worked together. They were all touchy, even though they probably held back. They looked happier than what they usually did. Rachel thought she had never seen Santana this happy and Quinn thought the same about both Santana and Brittany. It was much more pleasant to be around Santana, seeing as she didn't seem to lash out completely. Only a few sarcastic comments here and there, but nothing too bad. Quinn could see the look Brittany gave Santana, a longing stare. The same for Santana, when she thought no one was looking, she glanced longingly at Brittany. Sometimes they accidentally glanced at each other the same time, they'd then avert their eyes quickly and blush.

There was still an awkward length between their friends, but neither Quinn nor Rachel were stupid. They knew their friends well enough, they knew when they hid something from them and right now? Right now could they see right through it. They knew that they would get the news whenever something would happen and when they'd be ready to tell them. They knew that they'd be the one's to help during struggles and they knew that they would do the same for them. Quinn and Rachel could even tell that this was it for their respective roommates, at least for now.

Thirty minutes after their arrival Quinn and Rachel excused themselves by saying that they had somewhere to be. Santana could only guess where that'd be, since she had seen Quinn touching Rachel, close to her privates in, not so subtle ways. Apparently Quinn still got game, even though she was really awkward around Berry.

_That's what love does to people..._ she smiled and turned around to completely take in the blonde next to her who smiled brightly at her. They decided to take up where they ended it before the new couple came and interrupted their moment. They leaned in and hugged each other. Tightening the grip so they barely could breathe. Brittany inhaled deeply, taking in the intoxicating smell of Santana. She felt like she would be content in life if she'd get to hug Santana like this forever. They whispered sweet nothings to each other, about how they'd be able to be with each other soon and how much they liked the other... Both tried to hold back their tears, because they knew that it wouldn't be that simple.

As they held each other closely, they didn't notice the prying eyes of one Rachel Berry and one Quinn Fabray looking at them from the door. The curious couple then looked at each other and nodded, smiling knowingly before they left their friends to enjoy their time alone.

A while after their friends departure they decided to also leave. They'd spent way too long at the cafe and they were freezing. So instead of sitting down they decided for a little walk. They held each other closely around each others waists as they walked next to each other. They had no plans on where they were walking, they just walked. No words between them were spoken, only glances and brushes of their hands.

After a while they came to a halt.

"Do you want me to walk you home? We're not that far away." Santana mumbled as she made her head rest on Brittany's shoulder. The blonde gently rubbed Santana's head and held her closer. The night had been perfect and she really didn't want to leave Santana. She finally knew that Santana wanted her, and she knew that she wanted the Latina.

"Yeah, sure. If it wouldn't be too much for you? You promise to take a cab home?" Brittany stopped her caressing and nudged her shoulder so that Santana would look at her.

"Of course I'll take a cab. Never that I'd walk that far." Santana smiled up at Brittany who smiled back.

They walked hand in hand for about fifteen minutes until they stood outside of the building where Brittany lived.

Santana surprised with leaning in for a goodnight kiss, which she quickly reacted to. The feeling of Santana's lips moving against hers was the best feeling in the entire world and the kisses only got better each time. She could only imagine what they'd feel like in ten years... _what?_ She was sure by now, Santana was _it_. If she could, she would've stopped time right in this moment, but Brittany knew better. It was impossible to stop time and a moment couldn't last forever. But her lips trembled with more want as they unattached from each other, noses nudging each other as they stared longingly into each others eyes before completely stepping back. Santana smiled as she tucked some blonde hair behind Brittany's ear before they once again stepped forward and engulfed each other with a hug so tight as if life depended on it.

They said their goodbyes, Santana pecking the blonde's cheek and the blonde leaning in for yet another kiss on the lips. Santana promised to text Brittany the moment she got home and they made promises about meeting each other as soon as possible. Santana could only wish that it'd be over between Brittany and Artie by then, even though she knew that she'd probably have to wait for a while for that moment to happen. But she still remembered those words that her former boss had uttered to her all those years ago when she first came to New York. "Great things will come to those who are patient." She just hoped that her patience would last.

* * *

She was trying to unlock the front door to the apartment when she heard a male voice shout "Someone's coming" from the inside. Thinking that it's a burglar she did her best to hurry unlocking the door, even though she had always had some minor problems with, both locking and unlocking, doors.

"Hi...Artie..." Brittany said as she looked surprised at the shorter man who stood in the foyer. At least she didn't caught a thief in the action, but the man was not exactly the brunette she wanted it to be. "What are you doing here?" she continued cautiously, she didn't need to feign surprise, because she was actually quite surprised to see Artie at her place. Her boyfriend was never one for surprise visits, nor surprises in general. During their years as a couple he had only surprised her once, she realized as she thought back at the past years of her love life. Ironically, it was when she got re-introduced to Santana. She suddenly felt as if something had hit her face. She had been cheating on Artie, she had done something she said she would never do. She felt her perfect night crumbling apart as her conscience caught up on her.

"Surprise!" he exclaimed as he picked up a bottle of champagne and the latest issue of Valentina Magazine that he had hid on the floor behind a drawer. He walked closer and leaned in for a kiss. To his disappointment it wasn't returned, but what he could he say, his lady must've been too happy and surprised to see him.

Brittany shuddered at the feeling of his chapped lips on hers. There had been a time when she enjoyed it, but not now. If only Artie knew what she had done just minutes ago...

"What? What is this?" she stuttered out, beyond surprised as Artie handed over the magazine. The cover girl was an old friend of hers, but she didn't think that Artie knew that, so that couldn't be the surprise.

"Check out page thirty-six." Artie said and smiled widely as he grabbed Brittany's hand and pushed her into another room in the apartment.

"Wha-... why?" she was actually kind of scared right now. Artie was not exactly the person who'd ever visit her, unless he really had to. Like, for viewing parties, meetings or pretending to be the perfect couple among their families and friends, even though most of their friends knew how their relationship really was like. Sometimes for sex, but she was definitely not in the mood, and the champagne meant something else. But that was not explaining this sudden visit. She could probably count a few reasons, like a good review of the show or something like that from Valentina. But that wasn't really champagne- worthy.

"Surprise!" Quinn and Rachel shouted in unison. The moment they saw Brittany enter the living room they jumped up from their seats and walked over to greet their friend with hugs and Quinn with cheek kisses. After the greeting the dating couple looked knowingly with sad eyes at their friend, who looked with equally sad eyes as she looked down at her and Artie's intertwined hands.

When Quinn got the text message from Artie a couple of hours earlier she had hurried over to the closest bakery with Rachel in tow, much to her own displeasure since she was on a date. But Artie persuaded her by telling her that she had to since she was her best friend and that he couldn't because he had to prepare a bunch other things before the arrival of his girlfriend. When they got to the apartment those "bunch of other things" had apparently been to buy the cheapest champagne at the store down the street. She had picked the perfect cake, it was shaped like a duck and the layers on the inside was in different colors. It was perfect for the occasion, it was perfect for every Brittany occasion, but this was definitely the nicest cake she had bought to her best friend. During their conversation at the café she had been close to slip up several times, Rachel too had been close to slip up, but Quinn had brushed her hand along Rachel's leg every time. Maybe not the smartest idea as she noticed Rachel faking to slip only to have her hand brush against Rachel's leg, not that she really minded, but they were along people. Either way, they made the whole thirty minutes without spoiling anything, and that was good for being Rachel and Quinn.

However, she knew that Brittany wouldn't be too keen on Artie's surprise, and she had just had cake. After seeing her with Santana she knew that this wouldn't really excite her roommate, not like she had seen Brittany around Santana. Quinn didn't like Artie, but she almost felt bad for the guy. He was so screwed. Apparently he had wanted to call over all of their friends for a surprise shindig and if it weren't for Quinn he would surely have done it.

"Ladies, sit down and watch as the man in the house open this fine bottle of champagne", Artie said, trying to make his voice sound deeper. Quinn glared at him and mumbled something about housecleaning and cooking if he'd spray anything, Artie would be their new "cleaning lady" for a month. Lucky for Artie that he didn't spray anything.

Brittany sat between Quinn and Rachel on the sofa. She didn't really want to keep them apart since they seemed so in love. She knew the feeling of liking someone and not be able to sit close to them, even though that was a little bit different. But she couldn't do much when they insisted she'd sit in the middle, she was kind of relieved though, because that meant that she couldn't sit next to Artie. As Artie opened the bottle she didn't even look, not even a glance, at him. She felt a person on each side of her grab her and hug her closer as she fumbled with the magazine in her lap. The tighter they held her, the more nervous she got. She had no clue what it could be that was worth a bottle of champagne, a surprise visit from Artie and her friends holding her like this. She only wished that Santana was here with her. _Page thirty-six, page thirty-six... twenty-three... twenty-eight... thirty-two... thirty-five... thirty-six..._

* * *

**A/N:** So sorry again for the delay. And for leaving you at yet another cliff... I will save you soon though! I got bits of the next chapter written, and I'm on a roll today!


	13. Make or Break

**A/N: A new chapter! Maybe a few new mysteries to solve?**

_I thought I'd drop some info on how far I plan on continuing._  
_I'm not entirely sure, but I'm thinking that there will be about four-five (including a longer epilogue) more chapters._  
_But yeah, not entirely sure, things might change! There's definitely a lot more to come in the next few chapters._  
_I hope you guys will stay in there towards the end! Enjoy this chapter, until next time!_

**Mystia45 (+ everyone):** Thank you! I guess I can't disagree, because I wouldn't mind more reviews! But all of you who are _reading_ and reviewing are awesome and definitely boosting.  
I guess that the Bartie for twelve chapters and counting isn't something many people appreciate. But thank you for still being there after all the cliffs and Artie!

**DeWolffHopper: **Thank you! (:

* * *

**CHAPTER 13**

Her jaw dropped and 'surprised' was an underestimation of her current state. She flipped to the next few pages and her jaw fell even more. A four page spread in Valentina Magazine. About her.

The first thing she noticed was the two pictures of herself filling the whole page thirty-six, both were taken by Santana and she wore the unicorn head on one of them and the second was from the same day. She couldn't help but smile as she remembered _that_ day. Page thirty-seven had a few paparazzi shots and a photo taken in Amsterdam, if she remembered correctly. Thirty-eight was an article about Fashion Lies Everywhere and page forty had her headshot with a small 'about Brittany'-section. She flipped back to the first spread and that's when she noticed the headline. '_Brittany S. Pierce is the new Queen of the Runways!_'. Under the headline she quickly read '_Written by: Mercedes Jones and Holly Holliday_', '_Photography: Santana Lopez, FLE and Jacob Ben Israel_' and '_Styling/makeup: Emma Pillsbury and Kurt Hummel_'.

She skimmed through the article, catching sentences about how she's turning the fashion industry into something better with her athletic shape instead of size 0, how beauty doesn't necessarily equals a mean girl. How she's finally getting the recognition she deserves and to quote, "It's Brittany's personality, charm, presence and beauty that makes you come back to the living room every Tuesday to watch 'Fashion Lies Everywhere', whether you want to or not. She's the unicorn, an unstoppable force and she's here to stay."

She read the last sentences out loud. "We're very happy to announce that both or Newcomer of the Year and Queen of the Runways, goes to Brittany S. Pierce. Come by our office and catch your invitation to the official ceremony, unicorn girl!" she giggled at the last sentence, it was definitely something that Mercedes or Holly could've written. Apparently they announced a few winners online each week, but she had been an exception featured in the paper magazine.

She didn't really know how to react to all of this, so she just sat there wide eyed and stared blankly at the pages of herself and words of praise. Surely, she was flattered and overwhelmed for the kind words and for Valentina awarding her like this, it was one of the biggest honors being crowned Queen of the Runways _and_Newcomer of the Year by Valentina and the newcomer award had always been based on fifty percent reader votes. This was a lot to take in. She was considered a newcomer but still got Queen of the Runway too. Maybe even the first one to ever get both. She hadn't really gotten the recognition from the fashionistas and bloggers out there until this year, while the industry people had known and seen her potential for years. She hadn't even seen this coming. No one had mentioned that she was a possible candidate for this, not even her friends at Valentina and none of the gossip magazines. If they wanted to surprise her, they surely succeeded.

The actual ceremony wouldn't be held until February, almost two months away. Announcing the winners prior to the ceremony was, indeed, a bit weird. But according to Quinn too many people had become broken and completely devastated at the actual ceremonies in the past when they had lost. So, to not drop any bombs during the ceremonies everyone already knew who'd won what prior to the awards show.

She felt the arms tighten around her as Quinn and Rachel both leaned in for a group hug and whispered "congratulations" and "you go girl". In return, Brittany whispered "I wish Santana was here", it was barely audible and Artie didn't hear it since he was busy pouring champagne into glasses. But the girls heard it and squeezed her even tighter until Brittany had to choke out a "Can't. Breathe." The three girls smiled at each other as they let go.

"Congrats babe! Here, have some champagne!" Artie shouted and handed over a glass. It seemed like Artie was the one that was the happiest over the magazine.

"No thanks, I don't drink." Brittany said and waved it off, forcing out a smile to show that she still was grateful that he thought of buying champagne for the occasion.

"Oh..." Artie said, dumbstruck by the rejection. Maybe that was something he should've known by now, that his girlfriend didn't drink alcohol, but he didn't keep his thoughts there for long.

Quinn's phone began to buzz and she walked away to take the call. Brittany could hear and see that she was smiling and replying with a "yes". Then her roommate walked over to her and held out the phone for her to take.

"Hello?" Brittany had no idea who it was as she put the telephone up against her ear.

"Now!" she could hear someone shout. "Woooooo!" a group of people shouted and Brittany began to laugh, because she had a feeling that she knew who these people were.

"How's our Newcomer _and _Queen of the Year?" she heard Kurt shout over the noise in the background.

"Oh my God! You knew about this!"

"Of course. I'm your PR man, they asked me if they could publish you in the magazine. We were waiting for Quinn to call. But not everyone knew, I told some of them yesterday and some got the news today."

"Oh my God! You all knew?" she shouted as she quickly stood up and pointed at her friends in the apartment, she could hear a few people shout "yes" and some said "no" over the phone. She could make out that one of the voices belonged to Joe, and one was definitely Sugar. "And you got speakers on?" she asked Kurt.

"No, no, not really, no. You just screamed so loud that I became deaf on my right ear and everyone else heard it too..."

"Oh. Sorry..." she whispered as if to make it up. She really didn't mean to scream that loud, she was just surprised that some of her friends could keep a secret like that. Since most of them was of the curious nature it was usually really hard to keep secrets away from each other. Even if they got the news today she could totally have seen Sugar calling her early to ruin the surprise. _Maybe she was one of the people who had said "no" in the background..._

"No, it's fine. I think it came back." Kurt laughed. "We just wanted to say congratulations! I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks Kurt." she smiled widely. She was so grateful for all of her friends.

"The network was planning on getting everyone together and celebrate soon. But I'll let you know when. Oh, and we're all invited to the ceremony, of course, you guys are on a hit television show about fashion. But now I'll let you go back to celebrating with Quinn and Rachel... oh, and Artie."

"Yes, thank you so much Kurt. You're the best!"

"I know I am the best honey. See you soon. Love you."

"Love you too, bye."

The moment that Kurt mentioned Artie she felt her chest tighten. She really had to do something about it. _Soon..._  
Brittany's thoughts got interrupted when she felt her own phone buzz and she hoped that it was Santana who had sent her the text that she had promised.  
She quickly grabbed her phone and unlocked it. She smiled widely as she saw that it was from Santana.

_From Santana: Hi Britt. Sorry for taking so long, but I'm home now.. Thank you for tonight, it was amazing! See you soon? Miss you already. Sweet dreams! (-: xx_

To Santana: Glad you got home safe. Got some amaaaaazing news! Call you tomorrow? Miss you too. I'll dream about unicorns and you. Sweet kisses! xoxo

She didn't actually mean to write 'sweet kisses', but she accidentally wrote it and without thinking she sent it like that. But what could she do about that. Santana was amazing when it came to sweet lady kisses...Her girlfriends could tell that it most likely was a text from Santana since Brittany beamed more than when she read that she'd gotten some of the finest honors in the fashion world. Quinn knew that Brittany would've wanted to celebrate this occasion with one special person, a person who wasn't invited tonight. But she could only imagined what would've happened if Santana would've followed Brittany upstairs tonight...

Artie however, seemed happy without knowing what was going on, sipping on his bubbly drink and humming in delight, already seeing the cash flowing in after his underwear collection being worn by the newly crowned Newcomer and Queen of the Runways in Valentina Magazine.

* * *

Artie had left late last night, stumbling out of the apartment after having a little too much champagne to drink. He had been a bit clingy for a while, but thank God for Quinn and Rachel who made him leave. She wouldn't have survived spending the night in the same bed as Artie. Not yesterday, not ever again. But it still wasn't over. She had no idea how to break up, but she knew that she had to, eventually. She knew that there was something better out there, waiting for her and she was going to call her right now.

"Britt?" she heard a tired voice answer after a few ringings.

"Hi, Santana! Did I wake you up?" Brittany chirped, definitely a morning person. But she was extremely happy to be talking to Santana, she really enjoyed talking to her, whether it was about something serious or just blabbering. But she didn't want to disturb her while sleeping.

"Hi, Britt. Yeah, but it's totally fine." Santana said, sounding a lot more awake now than a few seconds ago.

"Oh, sorry. I was just so excited to tell you this and couldn't help myself to call."

"No, don't worry. I'm glad that you called!" Santana meant it. She may have been woken up way too early, while having the best dreams, featuring blonde hair and blue eyes. But she was woken up by Brittany, so it didn't really matter, because to hear the blonde in the reality was better than any dream she could ever have.

"Oh, good. Well, you know I said that I got amazing news last night?"

"Of course, tell me now, before I explode because of excitement!" Brittany's excitement had been heard through her voice, and Santana couldn't help but become a little excited herself.

"I..." Brittany began before quieting for a few moments. "I'm Newcomer of the Year and Queen of the Runways, according to Valentina!" Brittany shouted through the telephone, jumping up and down, not that Santana heard that.

"Oh my God, Britt! Both?" Santana shouted. She was probably as excited as Brittany, if not more.

"Yes! How insane is that!"

"I'm so happy for you! You definitely deserved it!" Now Santana also jumped up and down, not that Brittany heard that. "You're amazing." Santana said a little lower.

"Thanks." Brittany said, blushing at Santana's words. Santana was more excited for her than Artie was, maybe even more excited than herself. She felt her heart beat faster as she thought about the possibility of celebrating this with Santana. Just the two of them. "I wish you were here to celebrate with me." She said in a hushed voice, words only for Santana to hear.

"Me too. Soon though?"

"Soon..." Brittany noticed the double meaning in those words, she only hoped that she could live up to them. She wanted it to be soon.

* * *

It had been a month and a half since the perfect night. The night when confessions and promises of the future had been made. Brittany and Santana had met a couple of times since then, usually for running, walking and other workout session, sometimes for lunches or some coffee, dinner if they were lucky. They had of course celebrated the awards that Brittany had won and a few weeks after the announcement that she'd won, Santana got an email saying that she'd also won an award. For the second year in a row she won the category 'Most Exceptional Fashion Photographer of the Year'. They decided to celebrate together, just the two of them, cuddles and a movie with hot cocoa, whipped cream and marshmallows. It was perfect activities for the winter.  
They had also seen each other at a New Years party, but not much had happened between them then, since Brittany had been dragged around the apartment with Artie's arm around her waist. They did however share longing glances at each other, but there was nothing the could do about it then.

Of course Brittany wanted Santana, and she had told the Latina that several times. But sometimes actions spoke louder than words and Santana was not sure if her patience would be enough this time around.  
Every time she met the blonde she wanted to lean in and touch her in some way, whether it was kisses or small touches or hand holds, but she knew that she couldn't, because Brittany didn't want to do anything until it was completely over between her and Artie. And she would respect that.  
She could see where Brittany was coming from, she had the purest heart in the world, which was worth more than anything. But at the same time, it hurt her to know that Brittany wasn't ready to give up on her current relationship.

* * *

"Rachel, what is this?" she shouted from her home studio. She knew well enough what the purple envelope was, she had gotten it before. But she had no idea who's phone number Rachel had stuck on her spotless computer screen with a sticky note. _I'll have to clean it later..._

"The envelope got your invitation to Valentina's Awards Ceremony, which I assume that you knew already. And don't bother in taking me as your guest again, I've already picked up my own invitation," Rachel shouted back. "For once are they appreciating a true star..." Santana could hear her say a little lower.

"And the phone number?" Santana rolled her eyes, it was something suspicious about this. Rachel never actually gave her phone numbers like this, and certainly not in her studio, her holy studio.

"Oh, that..."

"Berry!"

"It's Quinn's number." Rachel said innocently as she walked closer to Santana's studio so she didn't have to shout through the whole apartment.

"And why would I want you _girlfriends_ phone number?" Santana spit out. During the past month Rachel and Quinn had become an official couple. Which meant that Quinn, more than often, spent time in their apartment. Sometimes dressed in nothing but underwear. When she saw Quinn and Rachel cuddling in just their undergarments on _her _couch in front of _her_television, she almost gagged. But she knew that she had to accept it sooner or later, she had had random girls walking around in their apartment almost naked in the past, and Rachel couldn't do anything about it back then.

"Because. She said that it was important and that you would like the offer she got for you." Rachel continued. She knew that it wasn't useless to have this conversation with Santana, because even if her roommate had a rough exterior she usually agreed in the end.

"And what is it that she's offering?" she was really close to add a rude remark, but even she knew that that would be enough and way to cruel, even for her.

"I can't tell you that. But I know that you'll like what she got to say." Rachel turned around and walked away, leaving Santana to consider her options here. She either called, or didn't. She was curious as to what it was that was so urgent that Quinn wanted her to have her number, since the blonde probably would come by sooner or later.  
Her curiosity took the best of her and she dialed...

"Quinn Fabray."

"Hi _Quinnie_. It's Santana." she said in the sweetest voice that she possibly could pull off.

"Oh, Santana! I'm glad that you called!" Quinn said, ignoring Santana's annoying voice.

"Yeah, well, I wanted to know what all the fuss was about." Santana said, shrugging, knowing that Quinn couldn't possibly see that.

"Of course you wanted to know. I assume that Rachel spoke to you about it. She didn't say what it was about though, or did she?"

"Nope."

"Good." Quinn said. "Then I won't need to punish her toni..." she mumbled to herself.

"Oh God, Fabray! Too much information! Too much information! Get to the point now or I'll hang up on you!" Santana shrieked, her patience running low and the image of Berry... yeah, no.

"No! Sorry!" Quinn shouted.

"Fine. Tell me what this is about then."

* * *

Their call lasted for about three minutes, before Santana decided that it was better if Quinn was there instead, so she could discuss this with Rachel at the same time.  
Thirty minutes later the bell rang and the shorter brunette ran over to open the door and greeted her awaited girlfriend.  
The moment Santana had told Rachel that she called Quinn over, Rachel had waited for her blonde like a dog waiting for food, except that Rachel was walking around impatiently asking stuff like "when is she coming?" and "shouldn't she be here soon?". _Annoying._

They sat down in the dining room, Santana making sure that she sat between the two lovers so that they wouldn't be too occupied in each other. This was an important decision that she had to make and she wanted the attention and help from Rachel for this. Not that she'd directly call it as help from Berry, just some tips.  
Both Quinn and Rachel realized the seriousness in the talk and kept their distance for the sake of the rage Santana would put them through if they weren't too invested in the discussion.  
It quickly turned into a heated discussion about the pros and the cons and twenty minutes later Santana came to the conclusion that the pros were far more and better than the cons. From an assistant and a friends perspective, Rachel agreed.

Santana and Quinn sealed the deal with a handshake for now and Rachel jumped up into Quinn's lap and sealed it with a kiss.  
Santana walked away, too busy thinking to notice the couple that acted like horny teenagers. The thought of this new thing she suddenly was in. She'd never imagine this happening an hour ago...

* * *

**A/N: You guys should've seen the beginning coming, since it was in the summary...  
When is the Bartie coming to an end? Who will Santana bring to the awards ceremony since Berry got her own invitation? What is Santana shaking hands on? NEXT CHAPTER! ... maybe...**


	14. Night of Confessions

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update (AGAIN! I've kind of lost time during the Summer holiday).  
Long chapter is long though. 9000 words, something. But it's time for awards!**  
** Changed the summary of the story to not spoil anything for the new readers.**

Thanks for the reviews and alerts!

**M206:**Haha, that's a good one though!

**DMG:**Things are never easy... and jealous Brittany, huh?

**DeWolffHopper:**Aw! We'll see what answers we'll get here...

**vikstar80:**They are cute, aren't they!

**definitelyalopez:**That's also a good one! (;

**WhatIsWrongWithYou:**Thanks! Saw that you got a model fic as well! Hope you'll finish it though. Will definitely check that one out, I've been looking for some for ages! (and since I didn't find any I wrote my own...)

Two new characters will be introduced now.  
And I haven't re-read it more than once (it's way too long to read over and over to look for mistakes), so if any of you find something that sounds inaccurate, let me know!  
This might be one big mess. Haha!

You ready? Uh-oh, here we go...

* * *

**CHAPTER 14**

For the past two weeks she had been too busy to meet Brittany. She wasn't even sure if she _could_ meet her right now. Brittany was still seen next to Artie in the gossip magazines... not that Santana read those. She just, tried to keep herself updated on the life of the new runway Queen, even though she was only a phone call away. She didn't want to seem to desperate and curious how everything was between Artie and Brittany. Brittany hadn't called either, so it wasn't like _she_was ignoring the blonde.

The Valentina Awards was only a few days away. She had already found her plus one guest to bring and she was very excited that her old friend would fly over just for this.

Even though the winners for every category were announced prior to the ceremony, the Valentina Awards was one of the biggest fashion awards with enormous press coverage by some of the biggest fashion magazines, newspapers and other medias that were lucky enough to get invitations. Even though Valentina usually were their competitors, you couldn't just miss this award show because of a reason like being competitors. This was about fashion and getting the word out about brands. Whether you're a model, photographer or designer.  
It was also the place to be and a lot of celebrities were always in the attendance so the gossip was flowing like never before.

* * *

It was Kurt who had picked the dress for her, like most of the times when she needed help with styling.

"A Queen needs to look like a Queen" he had told her and handed her a nude colored dress with a bodice that was covered in rosettes and pearls. The dress was stunning. It looked like something that could be worn by a bride.  
Since it was Kurt's friend who had designed it, they even got it for free.  
Kurt had thrown her some diamond earrings and a bracelet for her to wear along with the dress. It was a perfect combination. You couldn't see the shoes since the dress was covering her legs down to the floor, but she was wearing a pair of nude wedges, which made her even taller. But since she was pretty short for being a model, she was sure that there were many others that would be a lot taller than her tonight.  
She topped it off with her hair straight and flowing over her shoulders. She pulled of the natural look perfectly. The makeup framed her eyes and her freckles could be seen through the thin layer of makeup she wore over the rest of her face. Less _is_more.

* * *

Rachel had long gone over to Quinn and Brittany's apartment, for once.  
Rachel would go to the venue together with Quinn, Brittany and the rest of their invited friends and she and her plus one would meet up with them later.  
The friend that Santana would bring with her would come over in about an hour, so she still had time to prepare herself for the evening escapades. She had no idea what to expect for the evening.  
Santana always did her styling herself so she never had to feel awkward when trying on something horrid one of the stylists tried to make her wear.  
She remember that one stylist who tried to make her wear a black and white patterned cowhide. She had no idea what that stylist was thinking. Disgraceful wearing an animal like that. Never ever would she wear a dead cow on her body, nor would she wear fur. Maybe Gaga could pull of red meat as a dress, but that didn't mean that Santana Lopez wear something hideous as a dress made out of a cow's skin. And _hello_her assistant and... closest friend is a vegan. Not that she would actually admit that Rachel is her closest friend.

However. For tonight she had picked a _mini dress_, as she was sure people would write about in the magazines tomorrow, but it was chic and still elegant. It was a mullet dress, short on the front and longer at the back. It had what she would call a "cascading tail" hanging down on the back, but she liked it. It was silver metallic and almost shining with a see-through pattern. Her feet were clad in a pair of grey heels and a large ring was spotted on her left hand. She had pinned her hair into a bob hairstyle with lots of volume and tried to hold back on the makeup, but couldn't help herself when she found the rouge and red lipstick. Not too red, just perfect.

* * *

The others had already jumped out of the limousine to meet the press. So now it was just her, Sam and Kurt left in the sleek car. She would get out before him, and she was in fact a little bit nervous.

Kurt had informed her that there would be photographer's right outside the car, then they'd hurry inside the building, where the actual red carpet would begin. Only to prevent freezing to death in beautiful dresses and dapper suits.

She wasn't used to walking red carpets, and especially not alone since she usually walked it down with Sam or Artie. Tonight was their nights. You see, Sam had won King of the Editorials. And walking with someone unknown was not an option since that only would start rumors, and tonight would indeed be her night. So the spotlight was supposed to be on her and not on who she's bringing with her. That was something Kurt had told her, and she agreed. Well, Kurt would of course be beside her to help her with questions. So she wouldn't exactly be alone.

"Ready?" Sam asked and leaped in for a hug before they would part.

"Ready?" Kurt mimicked.

"Yeah, I... I'm ready." Brittany smiled back at her friends.

Through the tinted window she could see a bunch of photographers lining up, ready for her to greet the press. And she was ready. Because Santana would probably be somewhere inside to greet her.

"See you soon, Sam." she glanced back and caught Sam's wink and thumbs up at her, which she returned.

"Our Queen is going to kill it tonight!" Kurt squealed in excitement.

Kurt reached for the door handle, opening it for the _Queen_. The driver soon took over and opened the door completely for Kurt to step out first since he sat closest to the door. Then he helped Brittany out, like a true gentleman. She thanked him, and for a moment her mind went blank as she took her first step out of the limo.

She was met by camera flashes going off. Random questions was thrown at her from everywhere around her. But she soon gathered herself and smiled confidently as she waved at everyone.

Kurt told her to hurry inside where the accredited press would be. She did as she was told, and soon enough she was inside the old theatre building. There was a long hallway and the red carpet was rolled out. Down the hall she could see her friends.

She let her jacket slide down her arms gracefully and Kurt held it for her. She was so ready for this.

People still shouted random questions at her, but they were much more composed since these were the professional journalists that were actually let inside the building to report.

She posed in between taking steps as the sound of camera shutters kept filling the room. It was like she was a whole new person in front of the cameras, more confident in a way. Kurt was leading her way from behind her, telling her where to stop and where not to stop. For example, she was not supposed to stop in front of the photographer with the big brown afro, whom she recognized from somewhere, but she couldn't pinpoint it. She kept walking until Kurt told her to stop.

Only once did she disobey Kurt's requests. They were on a tight schedule, so she didn't have time to stop for very long. But she couldn't help but to stop a few extra seconds when someone caught her sight. It was a blonde little girl with big blue eyes, much like her own. The little girl was expectantly holding out a little notebook and pen for her to take.

"Hi cutie!" Brittany said as she bowed down to the girls height. She felt the photographers aiming their lenses towards her from the sides and from her back. Luckily she knew that her dress was long enough to not show anything that could cause drama.

"Ihhhk!" the little girl squealed and she jumped up and down. "Look mommy, Britty!" she said as she pulled in the hem of her mother's shirt, who currently tried to concentrate in taking a picture of her daughter and the model.

"I love your dress!" Brittany said as she looked at the purple shimmering spangle dress the girl was wearing.

"Thanks." the short blonde smiled shyly. "I really like yours too."

"Thank you, sweetie." she said as she looked at the girl in front of her. "You want to take a proper picture of us?" Brittany asked as she looked up at the mother of the child.

"Yes, please. I think Laura would love that. If it wouldn't be too much to ask?" Brittany glanced back at Kurt before replying. Kurt was tapping his foot impatiently, but even Brittany knew that Kurt thought that this girl was absolutely adorable.

"Of course not!" Brittany stood up again, only to hold up the rope dividing the press and red carpet area. "So, you're Laura, huh?" Brittany bowed down to the girl again, who nodded and smiled widely. "How old are you?"

"I'm five!" Laura said and held up five fingers. Thinking of it, she was pretty tall for her age...

"Oh, so you're a big girl!"

"Yup." the blonde girl said proudly. "What are we going to do for the picture?" Laura said excitedly.

"I don't know. Surprise your mum maybe?"

"Ready?" Laura's mother shouted as Laura adjusted herself to the right pose. Her hand connected to her hip and a pout grazing her lips. Exactly like a real model. Meanwhile, Brittany smiled widely and put up two fingers behind Laura's head. A second later the flash went off and little Laura leapt up to hug Brittany.

"Thank you, Britty!" the girl said as she embraced Brittany. "I'm your biggest fan!"

"I'm sure you are!" Brittany hugged back and held Laura tightly. She could definitely see herself in the girl, not only the looks, but the way she acted too.

"Can I get your autograph too?" Laura asked shyly as she held out the little notebook and pen that first got Brittany's attention.

"Of course! What do you want me to write?"

"Surprise me!" Laura tried to mimic what Brittany had said moments ago.

"Okay." Brittany smiled and grabbed the pen and notebook. '_To Laura, my biggest fan..._' In the corner of her eye she could see Laura trying to peek at what she was writing. "Hey! No peeking!" Brittany reached out to tickle the girl. Laura giggled and shut her eyes closed, only to try peeking again. "Uh-uh!" Brittany said as she kept writing.

_'To Laura, my biggest fan. Thank you for being awesome! (-:  
Do you like unicorns? I do!_

ps. You're super pretty!  
- Love, Brittany S. Pierce'

She doodled a unicorn head after her signature, which to her own pleasure had pretty much become her trademark as of lately.  
She handed over the book and pen to Laura, whose smile grew even wider, especially when her eyes landed on the little doodle.

"Thank you! The unicorn is really pretty, like you!"

"Right back at you!" Brittany smiled. "Come give me another hug!" she opened up her arms for the girl to come closer.

"You're the best, Britty! But..." Laura looked away, her cheeks turning a bit pink.

"What?" Brittany smiled and nudged Laura to continue.

"But... why are you not with Artie tonight?" Brittany had already gotten a few questions about him tonight, and it wasn't like it was a secret that he was on a vacation instead of being here with her and their friends.

"Laura!" Laura's mother said sternly. "I'm so sorry." she looked at Brittany apologetically.

"It's okay." Brittany only kept smiling. "Can you keep a secret?" she looked straight into blue eyes. It was scary, really. It was like looking at her five year old self in the mirror.

"Yes." Laura bit her lip nervously. _Yeah, like looking at herself..._

"Okay. Come here then." Brittany leaned in closer to the girls ear and whispered something to her, for her ears only. She made sure to not say anything too loud, because she knew that that would cause her trouble.

When she was done whispering secrets, Laura nodded, smiled and gave her thumbs up. Brittany winked at her in return. They all thanked each other again, both Laura, her mother and Brittany. Kurt stood a few feet away, looking sternly at Brittany for taking way too long and Brittany could only shrug and continue to walk.

"Mummy! Britty gave me bunny ears! Mummy! Look! Look!" Brittany smiled knowingly as she heard Laura shout excitedly. _She must be looking at the picture..._ _I'm glad I could make someone's day a little brighter.  
_She walked to another journalist and Kurt practically pushed her forward, not accepting another long stop on the way.

"What did you whisper to her?" Kurt whispered to Brittany.

"I don't know." Brittany smiled and shrugged it off.

"Brittany."

"Fine." Brittany said and leaned in closer to Kurt so she could whisper the, not so anymore secret, secret to him.

"Oh, Brittany Susan Pierce. You did not tell that little girl that!" Kurt hissed out. He could not believe this. "What if she tells someone!"

"She won't. And it doesn't matter." Brittany shrugged again. "Plus. Her name's Laura and not '_little girl_'." Brittany pointed out cheekily. Before Kurt could continue his little rant, Brittany had stopped abruptly in front of a journalist she remembered.

* * *

She worked the carpet like the professional that she is.  
The journalists fought to be able to ask her a single question, in some cases two or three if they were lucky. Kurt waved off some of the most inappropriate ones. But mostly they wanted to know who styled her, expectations for the evening, thoughts about winning the awards, plans for the future and if she was going to be a part of the cast for season two of Fashion Lies Everywhere, and so on. She did however have some trouble when getting the "_who are you wearing_?"-question. Because as far as Brittany knew, she didn't wear _anyone._ That's when Kurt had to interfere and tell the reporters that the fashion model was wearing a "_Keveza_". Brittany had no idea what or who that was, but the name oddly sounded a lot like Kurt's friend who had designed the dress.

Some of the journalists asked her more personal questions, like, why she went alone and didn't have Artie next to her this evening. It was well known that she was dating the castmate, since they were the only couple on Fashion Lies Everywhere. However, she didn't tell her and Laura's secret to anyone of those who asked about the designer boyfriend.

The photographers were crazy around her as well and she showed off some of her most playful poses, like the 'v' sign and the metal horns, she even showed some tongue and, well, she was just her usual self and it worked fine and before she knew it she had walked the whole carpet and through the glass doors that would lead them inside the next room, where her friends were patiently waiting for her, Sam and Kurt to finish with the press.

* * *

To her disappointment, Santana wasn't inside when she finally greeted her friends, who had already taken a glass of champagne each. Since they didn't win anything tonight, they didn't have as much press coverage to do as her and Sam, even though the cast had been very popular among the journalists and photographers as well.

A few minutes later she spotted Santana through the door opening and she smiled widely at the thought of soon meeting the brunette again, after two weeks away from each other.

She definitely appreciated the view in front of her. Santana wore a super short dress that showed off her tan legs. And her hair in a bob. Santana looked absolutely _smokin'_tonight.

However, soon enough her smile faltered as a journalist walked away and gave Brittany a full view of Santana, and all around her. The journalist had been covering something, or rather, _someone._

"Who's that?" Brittany asked as she laid her eyes on the tall blonde next to Santana, they had their arms linked together and the unknown blonde was currently leaning closer to the Latina to whisper something to her, which apparently was something funny since Santana laughed like never before. The blonde hair was flowing over her shoulders and her dress was even shorter than Santana's. Her legs went on _forever_. Those pouty lips, almost like Sam's, but bigger and even more luscious. And the _boobs. _She must've done some surgery, because they were a lot bigger than what actually fit her petite body stature. But to Brittany, they did look really good pushed up in that dress. She couldn't deny that this woman was beautiful and it was obvious that she was a model.  
She did recognize her from somewhere...

"Oh, that's... oh!" Rachel's eyes almost bulged out in fear as she saw who Santana had brought as her plus one. Santana didn't want to tell her who she'd bring when she asked, and if she had known that Santana would've brought _that _as her plus one she would've stopped her. She certainly knew who this young lady was, and she didn't like it one bit. "That's Joanne, she's a British... _model_and... Santana's... uhm... guest tonight?" Rachel said, but it was more like a question than an actual statement. She was almost completely sure that the british woman was her plus one though. Why else would she be here.

"_You_know Joanne Starr?" Kurt said in disbelief.

"Starr. More like Thompson." Rachel mumbled. "I wouldn't say that I know her. But I could ask you the same. How do you even know who that is? I thought you were gay?" she said and cocked an eyebrow towards her friend. So very unlike Rachel. Kurt just dismissed the question, his face turning a shade of red as he kept looking at the blonde on the other side of the room.

"Oh, isn't that Joanne?" Quinn squinted her eyes when she looked at the direction that had her girlfriend and friends attention. She smiled widely as her assumption got confirmed. She had gone to the ladies room and missed the buzz about the unknown blonde that Santana had in tow.

"She's totally cute. If you're into the tramp look." Kurt said as he eyed said woman. "Oh, but that dress is quite chic..."

"You're not really helping here." Quinn said to Kurt as she glanced at Brittany who sent a death glare towards Joanne.

"But definitely last season." He shrugged. "What?" he screamed in surprise as Quinn slapped him on the arm.

"Please, don't say anything else about her." Quinn once again glanced at Brittany who still sent that glare at Joanne. If looks could kill...

"I don't actually think that Santana likes the prostitute look..." he continued. Quinn and Brittany had both kept Kurt updated to what was going on in Brittany's life. Kurt knew about Brittany's interest in the young photographer, and he also knew about Santana's interest in the blonde model who currently stood next to him. He may be their PR man and stylist, but first and foremost, he was their friend.

"Just plus one?" Brittany mumbled. Her eyes glued at the Latina with friend who still stood a little too close to each other for her own liking.

"Really Britt, you shouldn't worry about her. It's probably not like what you think." Quinn said calmly.

But Brittany didn't listen. She was too busy staring down _Joanne_ from afar. Because the scenario in front of her certainly looked like a _thing. _Or something_._  
Brittany couldn't tear her eyes away from the stunning woman next to Santana. If Santana was not remotely interested in that woman she'd be stupid, especially since she seemed to have a preference in blondes.  
And she couldn't let go of those boobs either. Brittany quickly noted that she probably was a D-cup.  
It wasn't like she was jealous of them, she personally liked her own small one's.  
But maybe _Santana_ preferred something to grab. The lips too. Joanne's pouty lips versus her own thin one's. Brittany didn't mind her thin lips, as long as they were soft. But maybe Santana wanted something more pouty and... kissable? _Uhh..._

She winced at the picture in front of her. Two beautiful women, laughing at each others jokes, being all touchy, whispering things, arms intertwined, they moved around gracefully on the red carpet.  
This must have been what Santana felt every time she saw her and Artie together. Minus the gracefulness and two women.

Jealousy. Shame. Regret. Those were just some things Brittany felt at that moment.  
Images of Santana together with Joanne came to her mind, how Santana must have spent lots of time with the visiting blonde. And not only the talking and laughing kind of time spent with each other, but also the intimate time spent in the bedroom, because no way had Santana kept her fingers away from that.  
At least now she knew why Santana hadn't asked to meet her, or called her, the past weeks. Except for a couple of text messages here and there. _I waited too long...  
_She knew that she was jumping conclusions, but what she saw in front of her didn't help at all.

Brittany felt her heart crumble upon the thought of Santana being with someone else. She felt the tears come closer as she made up her mind of what probably had occurred the past weeks when Santana had been "too busy". She had to steady herself on Quinn's shoulder and gasp for air. But other than that, she did a good job at keeping her feelings inside of her, at least she thought she did a good job. Something that did go unnoticed by her was the looks her friends sent her, because they all really cared about Brittany, even though they all weren't so sure of what was going on.  
Brittany's eyes kept following Santana and Joanne as they now were done with the red carpet and got inside the room they were currently in. For a millisecond her eyes met Joanne's clear, blue, eyes and the other blonde smirked and winked at her, as if to show that she had won. But Brittany shook her head at that thought. Joanne couldn't possible know about her, or could she? _But that wink..._

Santana let go of Joanne's arm, only to walk up to a group of girls who all smiled at Santana as she approached them. The photographer turned around to Joanne and winked at her, and Joanne shook her head and sent a glare her way. _Even Joanne seems jealous..._

Santana spoke animatedly to the group of girls, a few of them nodded in return. After a moment one of the girls, of course, a blonde, took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. Brittany had no idea what it was, but she had her own idea of what could be written on there.

All this time she had thought that Santana had changed, that she had decided to stay with one person only, with _her_. But apparently, Santana still was the player she had read so much about in the magazines. It was obvious that the Latina was collecting yet another phone number. And with her _date_ standing next to her at that!  
She still knew that she was jumping conclusions, but what she saw and what she had read... this was not good...

* * *

"I need something strong..." Brittany mumbled and made a beeline towards the bar.

"But you don't drink..." Rachel said as she remembered that Brittany don't even drink champagne to celebrate.

Quinn hurried after Brittany to the bar. Her friend really needed _someone_ right now. She knew Brittany, she knew that the she probably had read too much into this. Brittany was smart, but thinking wasn't her strongest side. Brittany probably expected Santana to leave her for someone else. But Santana and Brittany weren't exactly exclusive, and that was probably why the blonde was extra worried. She still hadn't left Artie, and she pretty much kept Santana away from intimacy, something that the Latina had been so well known for. Brittany had read so much about Santana, about how she usually slept around, and of course Brittany would expect the worst the moment she'd see Santana with another woman, an attractive woman at that.  
But Quinn knew that things really weren't like what they seemed. But Brittany didn't listen, or didn't _want_to listen. Quinn just hoped that the truth would come out before it would be too late. Both for the sake of Brittany and for Santana, who probably didn't have a single clue about the current state of Brittany. She didn't want to cause any harm to any of her friends, but right now she couldn't do much about it.

Whenever the truth would come out, it would be all Brittany's fault to go through with the embarrassment, but she would of course be there to take care of her if she would be needed. Not that she thought she would be needed.

* * *

When she caught up to Brittany she was already looking through the drink menu.

"I need something really strong..." Brittany mumbled, her chest heaving as if she'd just ran a marathon.

"We got everything from..." the bartender began before Brittany interrupted.

"What's in that strawberry slushie?" Brittany asked in a half daze.

"It's a non-alc..."

"I'll have the strawberry slushie, thank you." Brittany mumbled again.

The bartender soon handed over her the cold red liquid in a big glass with a fresh strawberry squeezed onto the side with an umbrella and straw stuck in the mix. It wasn't exactly classy, but what could she do about that. It looked pretty damn tasty.

"I hope it's strong..." she mumbled yet again before throwing the straw and started to chug the drink. When she was done with a third of the glass she suddenly got aware of something. "Co... cold... _cold_!" she nearly shouted and waved with her hand in front of her half agape mouth as if that would be to any help.

Quinn who had seen everything from next to her, quickly grabbed her hand and dragged her to the nearest toilet.

"_Models_..." the bartender shook his head as he poured himself another whisky.

* * *

Meanwhile, Santana was looking for something, or rather _someone_, like a lost puppy.  
She had expected to be greeted by Brittany the moment she put her foot in there, but she was nowhere to be seen.  
She could deny it all she wanted, that she hadn't missed Brittany the past weeks. Because even though she was hurt by the fact that the blonde still hadn't left her douche of a boyfriend, she still couldn't help her feelings for her. Plus. Tonight, she was extremely curious to see who Brittany had brought as her guest.

She greeted her other friends and introduced her guest for them. Joanne. Rachel already knew her, but the others were happy to meet new people.  
She asked if they knew where Brittany was, but her friends said that they last saw her go to the bar. But Santana couldn't see her over there right now. Only a weird looking bartender who sneaked himself drinks. And, Santana knew that Brittany didn't drink. So that was just weird, that she would go to the bar.  
So instead of looking like an obsessed weirdo, going around asking if they had seen the blonde model. She stayed with her friends and sneaked glances around, trying to look out for blonde hair that belonged to _that_blonde.

She felt Joanne lay her arm around her neck to reassure her that everything would be okay and she turned around to meet her knowing gaze. She really appreciated how her friend could read her like that, know when to help calm her down.  
She had told her about Brittany, how she had finally found _the one_. It was funny, they used to joke about it together, how they would never found anyone like that. That finding one special person was a myth and that it was for fairytales and romantic comedies.  
But she had also told Joanne how the other blonde still hadn't let go of her boyfriend and how it worried her. Her long time friend reassured her that she had to come around sometime, "_because no one would want to miss out on the fine piece of lady that is Santana Lopez_", to quote.

"So, Quinn? Quinn Fabray? She's here too?" Joanne asked to break the awkward silence. She had caught on as a blonde guy with big lips and Rachel spoke about one _Quinn._Joanne was suddenly a lot more interested in meeting all of Santana's friends. Santana must have forgotten to tell her that Quinn would be there too.

"Yes, Quinn Fabray. She's here somewhere. You know her?" Kurt chirped even though he knew that, yes, Joanne Starr did know Quinn Fabray.

"Not that it's any of your business. She's _my _girlfriend." Rachel whispered under her breath and sent a glare towards Joanne.

* * *

From the other side of the room Brittany and Quinn stood. Brittany still threw daggers with her eyes, even though her inside was starting to come down from its height and realise that it was over.  
But she got startled when she felt someone pull in her dress. She looked around.  
Nothing. She looked down.  
There was little Laura, again.

"Hi beautiful." Brittany smiled and bowed down.

"Hi Britty!"Laura grinned a big toothy smile.

"This is Quinn." Brittany introduced her friend, who also bowed down to Laura's height. "Quinnie, this is Laura."

"Hi Laura." Quinn smiled and reached out her hand for the girl to shake, which she took and giggled.

Quinn gawked in confusion as she looked between the two blondes who giggled, whispered and talked like they had been friends forever. The little girl literally looked like a copy of Brittany too! But younger.

"Is it her?" Laura whispered into Brittany's ear.

"No." Brittany smiled, remembering the secret she had told her biggest fan.

"Is she in here then?" Laura asked expectantly. "I want to know if she's at least prettier than me." she said and pouted. This made Brittany burst out laughing. How adorable was this little kid...

She looked around, trying to seek out Santana out of all the people in there. But she couldn't see her anymore. It was starting to get crowded and everyone would probably get told to get to their seats soon.

"Can't see her sweetie." Brittany said, pouting. "Where's your mommy?" she realized that maybe Laura had sneaked away, so her mother might be looking for her right now. She didn't want people to believe that she was a childnapper... or worse, a _kid_napper!

"Mummy is still working." Laura pointed through the glass doors, where the red carpet still was rolled out and the celebrities still walking on. "But she said that I could go look for you if I wanted to! So please don't get mad at me." Laura pouted again.

Quinn looked even more taken aback as she kept looking between the two blondes. Even the pout was just so _Brittany. _This girl was either a copy of Brittany, or she had just studied the way Brittany acted. _Creepy fangirl kid..._

"Maybe we can go ask your mommy if you can hang out with me tonight? If you want to, of course!"

Laura nodded enthusiastically and dragged a smiling Brittany with her. Quinn in tow. Back to the red carpet and the journalists...

* * *

To Santana's disappointment, she wouldn't be sitting with any of her friends. Except for Joanne.

She was lead to a round table with a bunch of other photographers and their friends. She spotted her name on a seat and sat down as she greeted some of the other photographers.  
She recognized some of them. Terry. Mario. But none of them really caught her interest so she didn't engage in any conversation, even though it was obvious that some of the others tried to start conversations with her. She was too excited and nervous to actually talk with anyone. But Joanne's soothing words was helping her calm down a little. Because where on Earth was Brittany...

Apparently the Fashion Lies Everywhere cast and crew had a whole table for themselves, a few tables away from the photographer's stood a long table that could probably fit twenty people.  
And Rachel, the traitor, decided to sit with them because of Quinn. Come to think of it, she hadn't seen Quinn either tonight. And not Artie. Not Sugar...  
But Santana just wondered where on Earth Brittany were...

The Fashion Lies Everywhere table was almost full, a few spots here and there were empty.  
She waved to the people she recognised and they smiled and waved back. Sam, Joe, The Blur... all the people she recognised from the viewing party she was at a couple of months ago.

* * *

"So, where's that lady you're doing the deeds with?"

"What? No... you... we... Britt... not..." Joanne burst out laughing at Santana's random slurring and the fact that Santana's face turned another color. Reddish. She had never seen her friend like this. It was fun and certainly refreshing, compared to the Santana she had known for years.

"Calm yo tits. I'm kidding." Joanne said. "But really, where is she?"

"I don't..." Santana began before blonde hair caught her attention by the doors. She felt her mouth go dry as she laid her eyes on Brittany. The blonde didn't show any legs, but _God_, even from afar she could see that Brittany barely had any make-up on. And her hair like that...  
Brittany didn't look sexy. She looked absolutely stunning, gorgeous, breathtaking...  
Santana couldn't tear her eyes away. To her disappointment Brittany didn't meet her eyes and it seemed like she wasn't even looking for her, more like avoiding.

"So that's her, huh?" Joanne grinned as she followed Santana's line of sight.

"Yeah..." Santana mumbled, her eyes glued at Brittany with... a little girl in tow.

"Funny story..." Joanne began. "I tried to flirt with her earlier." this certainly broke Santana out of her Brittany-trance.

"You did what?" she felt anger bubbling inside of her. She raised from her chair and fisted her hands. She soon realised what exactly she was doing, and she quickly sat down again.

"Oh lord. You should've seen your face!" Joanne snickered.

"So, you didn't flirt with her?" Santana stared at her friend. _It must have been an evil joke..._

"Oh, I did!" Joanne burst out. Earning a few side-glances from their table friends.

"What! Joanne!" Santana said in a mix of anger and disappointment. She slapped the British model on the arm.

"Hey!" she said and rubbed her hand against where Santana had slapped her. "It was only a wink!"

"Gee! So?" Santana said sarcastically. "You were still flirting with _my_girl." she hissed out. She knew that Brittany really wasn't hers, but she wanted her to be, in an own kind of person way. You know. Because Brittany would never be anyone's property.

"I'm sorry, Santana!" she said, and Santana could see that the blonde really was sorry. "To my defence, it wasn't my fault that you didn't want to show me a picture of her."

"Fine. I'll take the blame then." Santana huffed and put her arms up to show that she was defeated. "After all, it was _only_a wink..."

So her plan had backlashed. She thought that if she'd show Joanne a picture of the girl _she_ had a thing for, Joanne would try and steal her away from her. But apparently, the British lady had found Brittany by herself and tried to take her away from her... to England!  
She would not let Brittany run away to England with Joanne. Never. _Uh-uh..._

* * *

As Brittany had taken her seat with the little girl in her lap, Quinn came into the room.  
Her eyes met Santana's and she looked at the Latina apologetically before taking her seat.  
She mouthed something her way, but she couldn't make out the words. She only made out "_you need to..._" The rest was impossible to read. She had no idea what she needed to do.  
The next second Quinn waved and smiled, probably towards Joanne, who freaked out.

"Oh God, did you see that?" Joanne asked frantically. "She waved at me! Quinn Fabray waved at me!"

"Yeah, calm yo tits." Santana rolled her eyes. "You do know she's taken, right?" this would be her revenge at the flirting, even though this was way worse.

"What?" Joanne shouted in surprise, eyes wide.

"Guess you didn't know then." Santana said casually and shrugged.

"Who?" the blonde said in disbelief.

"I'll let you guess."

"So he's here then?" Joanne asked and Santana giggled inwardly at the use of pronoun. _Him_.

"Yeah." Santana nodded and looked at the Fashion Lies Everywhere table, her eyes stuck at the back of Brittany's head.

"It's that charming boy with the pouty lips, isn't it? The one who sits next to her." Joanne said sadly. "He's quite the catch. He seemed lovely. I'm happy for her." she said, trying to sound happy, but without success.

"No, it's not him." Santana said as she looked at Sam with his blonde Bieber bangs. She had heard some rumors from Rachel about him getting it on with Mercedes. She still had to get that confirmed from her Valentina friend, but she guessed that that probably was the case.

"It's not?" Joanne eyed Santana carefully, to see if she was joking with her or not. But Santana didn't show any indication of a lie.

"Nope. It's actually..."

"Oh. God." the blonde interrupted. Eyes wide and mouth agape.

Santana followed her line of sight and was met with something that she had grown used to see, even though she wanted to gag every time it occurred. Every day, all the time, over and over...  
Quinn Fabray and Rachel Berry, eyesexing each other from the different sides of the table. From this angle they could even see Rachel rubbing her foot up and down Quinn's leg.  
_Berry got game..._

"Don't get sad. There's plenty of fish in the sea for you." Santana said as she hugged her friend. "_British_fish." she added sternly.

"Oh, come on! It was _one_wink... and I may have smirked her way..."

"But your smirk is irresistible! Joanne..." Santana whined.

"Shut it. I'm heartbroken here." the blonde mumbled and took one final glance at the happy couple a few tables away. "Plus. It's starting now." Joanne said as she saw a man in tuxedo enter the stage and walk towards the podium and microphone.

Santana accepted the fact that, yes, maybe Joanne was heartbroken. And, yes, the show was starting now...  
Plus, the beauty with their friendship was that they never could stay mad at each other for very long.

* * *

To Santana, the ceremony went by in slow motion.  
She had not once caught Brittany's gaze and she was starting to feel that maybe something was wrong. She had a weird feeling in her gut that something was indeed, very wrong. And she didn't like it one bit.  
The unknown words that Quinn had mouthed at her was still haunting her too. Because maybe she had done something to upset Brittany without even knowing.

"What if's" were hunting her mind as she watched a dance performance on the stage, without really watching. She had kind of zoned out.  
She only imagined Brittany swaying to the beats. The blonde had told her that she enjoyed dancing and had done it professionally when she was a kid, but still, Santana had never seen her dance.  
She pictured her and Brittany dancing with each other, moving to steady rhythms. It wasn't one of those cool hip-hop choreographies that was currently happening on stage. It was a slow one. Lots of body contact. Maybe some grinding...

Her thoughts of grinding against Brittany got interrupted the moment Joanne poked at her and told her that they would start presenting the different photography categories.

* * *

While most of the women had dressed up in different dresses, Holly Holliday was sporting a black blazer with white slacks and red boots. Eyes framed with a pair of sunglasses, the kind that was formed like hearts.

"I've heard that it's cool to wear sunglasses inside these days." Holly began and the audience chuckled with her.  
"When I was asked to present one of the winners here tonight. I had a really tough time just picking one of em'." Holly said as she glanced down on the memo cards in front of her, which she immediately threw away. "Screw these cards!" she said before continuing.  
"You see. A few years ago, I befriended two very talented women in the city of New York, and I couldn't be more happy, because tonight they are both here to accept their awards. If it's okay with them, I'd like to ask them to come up at the same time." the editor-in-chief took a brief pause before shouting, "Give it up for Santana Lopez and Brittany Pierce, everyone!" the crowd went wild as Santana and Brittany raised from their respective chairs to walk up to the stage. They quickly looked at each other.

The room was filled with cheers, wolf whistles and applause. Camera flashes went off and it didn't quiet until Holly hushed into the microphone. The both winners met each other on the stage where they were greeted by Holly who hugged both of them before pointing for them to move closer to each other.

Santana felt the buzz in her body from the applause and the people in the audience.  
Something that surprised her was to be standing on the stage next to Brittany, because she had no idea that Brittany even knew Holly, or vice versa. But she was also happy to be sharing this experience with Brittany since it was her first time to accept an award.  
She felt a sudden urge to reach for Brittany's hand, but she didn't know if that would be appropriate, so she didn't.

"Santana Lopez is an old friend of mine." Holly began. "She worked exclusively under my wings for a short while. But I guess she realized that there were far better options out there, ain't that right, sweet cheeks?" Holly joked and winked her way. Santana only nodded and smiled back.  
"That's why I'm happy to award her, for the second year in a row, Most Exceptional Fashion Photographer of the Year, and _forever_!" The crowd went wild again as Holly hugged and congratulated Santana once again before handing over a statuette and a bouquet of various flowers.  
All of the photography awards that Valentina gave away looked like cameras, no surprise there. This year all of the awards were made out of glass with a tint of purple color, and Santana had read somewhere that it was to share awareness about supporting gay teens.

Santana walked towards the microphone to begin her speech, she had planned it for months. The moment she got the news that she'd be awarded again she had begun trying to figure out what to say.  
She always found it extremely hard to do speeches and usually forgot the most important things she wanted to say, but she hoped that her last repetition with Joanne would've been enough help for her to remember everything. She knew that it was important to thank everyone and to not say something idiotic. She was well past that stage and humiliation was something she was not ready for. Santana Lopez didn't do cheat memo notes or scribbling on any body part, unless it was scribbling with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

"Thank you, all of you, for this. It's a huge honor to be here tonight and get this award, and two years in a row! I'm so grateful. It's all thanks to you, the people, who enjoy my work. My art." Santana began, smiling down at the statuette in her hand.  
"First of all I'd like to thank my mother who gave me my first camera, and for always being there whenever I need her. Dad. Then I'd like to thank Berry, my assistant, for always being there." she saw Rachel raise from her chair and wave her acknowledgement. _That's so Rachel_. Santana sniggered into the microphone. "Holly and Mercedes from Valentina for being some of my best friends. Quinn. Puck. Dave. Joanne for being here with me tonight. Mike and Tina. All of you in the audience. Bless all of you. If I forgot anyone, I'm sorry, but you know who you guys are!" she rambled on. "And oh, I have a great announcement to make, and I will hold a press conference in a couple of weeks. I'll look forward to see some of you there." she smiled widely. "Thank you again and enjoy your evening." Santana ended her speech by holding up her newly attained statuette and another round of applause was heard.

When she turned around to walk back to her spot next to Brittany it hit her like a fucking train.  
It was like everything turned into slow motion again.  
_Shit..._

* * *

Brittany tried to not look disappointed as her eyes met Santana's, but she couldn't help to feel a little sad about this as she held her head high.  
She had pretty much got her assumptions confirmed.  
The Latina had even thanked Quinn, her lost friend whom she didn't befriend again until a couple of months ago. And Joanne. Santana thanked everyone.  
Except for her. _She didn't thank me..._

* * *

"Thanks for your speech honey, it was great." Holly nodded towards Santana before continuing. "And now. Ladies and gentlemen. A lady you surely will be seeing more of tonight and in the future. A natural beauty and the kindest person there is. Her heart is the purest and she will _always_ have a spot in my old heart. My little unicorn who became the whole worlds unicorn this year. Newcomer of the Year. Give it up again for Miss. Brittany S. Pierce, not to be confused with Britney Spears!" Holly shouted in the microphone and another round of applause and holler was heard in the enormous room.  
"Congratulations, I'm proud! I'll see you up here again soon. Si?" Holly whispered as she leaned in to hug Brittany. Holly handed over another set of flower and another statuette, that Brittany gladly accepted.

Her statuette was shaped like a girl in a long dress with flowing hair. It was, like the rest of the statuettes, also made of purple tinted glass.

As she walked over to the microphone she glanced sadly at Santana who stood behind her, Santana bit her lip and looked back apologetically as their gazes met.  
Brittany might not have prepared a speech, but she was going to swoon everyone tonight, she was sure of it. She wanted them to laugh tonight, so she quickly wiped away the sad face.

"Hi everyone. My name's Brittany S. Pierce, and as Holly said, never ever confuse me for being Britney Spears" she said sternly, she could hear a few giggles in the audience. Good start. "I'm here today to accept this award," she held up her statuette to show the audience. "Unicorn of the Year. Oh. Wait. No, my bad. Here it says Newcomer of the Year!" she said, feigning surprised as she looked down at the little plate on the statue which had her name, category, award and year on it.  
Joking like this was a big risk, because she could never be sure that the audience would understand. But this seemed to work, and two jokes was enough for one short speech. "No, I'm just kidding with you guys, or what? No, I'm actually Newcomer and not Unicorn, even though I am a unicorn... whatever." she heard more laughter erupt from the audience as she rambled.  
The good thing about these kind of things was that the audience laughed even though the jokes were horrible.  
And Brittany knew that they were the definition of lame, she had just always wanted to try it and see if anyone would actually laugh out of kindness. Apparently...

"I want to say a few thank you's. First of all, I've heard that you had to cast votes for this award. So thank you, all of you, who voted for me! I would definitely not be here without you all. And you who didn't as well, because I'm sure all of you are great people." Brittany began and smiled at the audience who shouted in approval of her words. "Then I'd like to thank my parents who let me be the wild child in New York and every other place around the world. Quinn Fabray and Kurt Hummel, for being the best friends a girl could ask for." she could see both of her friends throwing her kisses from afar. "Love you guys. She said and waved their way. "Rachel Berry. Sam Evans. The rest of the cast to Fashion Lies Everywhere, the producers, everyone behind the production. Holly Holliday for believing in me all those years ago. Blaine Anderson. The bloggers and fashionistas out there who spread the word about me. And to not forget anyone, thank you _everyone_! And also..." she quickly glanced at Santana, who bit her lip in anticipation. She quickly turned back so she faced the audience.  
"Special thanks to my new friend, Laura, who sits over there!" Brittany waved towards her table where the blonde girl sat and waved back as the spotlights turned to her. "Thank you for listening. This is for all the misfits out there!" Brittany shouted and held up her award. "See you soon!" Brittany winked, waved and smiled brightly as the security guards told her and Santana that they could walk back to their tables now. Brittany didn't even glance at Santana as she swayed around and walked down the stage with the Latina close behind.

She smiled as she took her place by her table. Her friends were flattered that Brittany had thanked her.  
Laura was of course most giddy of them all, since her idol had thanked _her_ specially up on that big stage and Brittany was happy that she had made her day even better. _At least someone had a good night..._

* * *

Meanwhile. Santana's head was spinning.  
Brittany didn't thank her either.  
But most importantly.  
Brittany never mentioned _Artie Abrams_.

* * *

Santana tried to send apologetical glances towards Brittany all the time, but the blonde never caught on what she was trying to do. Probably since she sat with her back towards her, besides, she was busy talking to that little blonde girl. _Brittany would probably be a great mother... what?_

"Just go over to her?" she heard someone say next to her.

"Joanne... I... I can't just... I messed up big time." Santana said quietly, not wanting anyone around them to hear.

"It wasn't like she thanked you either." Joanne shrugged as she took a sip of wine.

"I know. But I know that it was because I didn't mention her in my speech." Santana grunted as she lounged back in her seat, almost sliding down. She was mentally slapping herself for missing out on the most important person of them all. "Come on, I even thanked _you_!" Santana said sarcastically.

"Hey!" Joanne said and slapped her friend. "I don't know. Maybe she's jealous." Joanne said lightheartedly, earning one of Santana's famous eye-rolls.

"Brittany? Jealous? Why would she..." Santana's eyes went comically wide as she looked between Joanne's eyes and the hand that was currently resting on her knee, the other one over her shoulder.

* * *

It was time for her to accept her second award. The Queen award.  
Kurt was probably more excited than her, especially since they just saw who would present it.  
But Brittany had a lot of things going on in her mind. She was unsure of what to say in the acceptance speech.  
She had promised Laura that she would do this, and Brittany always held her promises, but still, after all this that had happened, she wasn't sure if she would be able to go through with it.  
But on the other hand. Was it really worth it? To just give up?

To present the award was Bryan Ryan. A fashion designer, most recognisable for his bedazzling.  
He had done a lot of collections worn by some of the big names like Naomi, Gisele, Lily and Sasha.  
It would be quite an honor to stand up there with him.

Mr. Ryan introduced her. Not as personal as Holly had done, since Bryan didn't know her. But he still mentioned very kind words about how he wished to be able to work with Brittany one day.

She walked up again. Meeting Holly who stood on the side of the stage, she congratulated her again, and so did Bryan.  
She slowly walked forward to the podium with the microphone.  
It felt different this time. She was more nervous and she wasn't even sure if she dared to look up and meet the prying eyes of the audience. But she did.  
Her mind was buzzing. She didn't even think of how this could end. If people, no, what people would write in the magazine's. If they would understand the meaning behind her words.  
Would they judge. Would they just not care...

This was it. It wasn't worth it to just give up on Santana, because Santana was worth everything to her.  
The speech she had promised Laura and herself. It was just to dive right in... no regrets...

"Hello again. For those who went to the ladies or mens room during my first speech, I'm Brittany S. Pierce. And for those of you who didn't go, well, I'm still Brittany." she began her second, and last, speech of the evening. Again, she could hear a few giggles in the audience, they made her feel more comfortable. "I'm going to keep myself relatively short this time. So, first off, I'm unbelievably flattered to get this award, I can't even believe it. I'm here! Queen of the Runways! Woo!" she shouted and held up her award and showed the audience her bright smile. "It's one of the finest awards that a fashion model can get. It's insane. Six months ago I would never have seen this coming. I'd like to thank all of my friends that I thanked before. But this time I got a special 'thank you' to make. My friend and inspiration, Santana Lopez. Thank you for everything, without you... I don't even know. I love you." Brittany felt her eyes pricking with unshed tears, but she still smiled and bowed to the roaring audience before walking down and taking her spot at her table, greeting a few people who congratulated her on her way over.

* * *

Her friends all hugged her and told her that it had been a very brave speech of her to do. To only thank one person like that. And at that, one who sat among the attendances.  
Only a few of the friends actually knew the depth of her words. That it in fact had been a real love confession.

She felt a small hand reach for her own and soon enough, Laura jumped up to sit in her lap again.  
The child giggled and leaned in to whisper something...

"You did it!" she said and did thumbs up.

Brittany smiled back, but Laura was too young to understand. What she had done would change _everything_.

She could almost feel those brown eyes burning holes in her neck from a few tables away, but she wouldn't turn around and meet them. She wasn't _that_ brave. Instead, she nuzzled herself closer to Laura so no one could see the tears pricking her eyes.

* * *

**A/N: I was lazy when picking what the girls would wear, so I actually picked dresses that the actresses have actually worn on award shows. If you want to see pictures you can google 'Heather Morris sag awards 2011' and 'Naya Rivera grammys'.**

**What do you guys think? Did you expect Britt-Britt to be the one to say those three words first?**  
**Who is this Joanne person to Santana?**

**Some of the unsolved mysteries are still, well, unsolved? Soon...  
Next chapter will take off right after this.**


	15. Other Confessions

**A/N:** Don't see long chapters like these as something that will occur regularly. I was going to end it when the awards part ended, but I didn't want to put the rest in the next chapter.

I mentioned, a few chapters ago. That it would only be like, five more parts or something.  
I have actually decided to make it longer! So, wooo for you if you like this story!  
I got one lovely message after the last chapter, which made me realise that I couldn't just end where I was going to end. I've kept you on for so long and there are so many characters that haven't got that much space in the story, that I personally would like to have more of. (read: Laura, Joanne... anyone else you guys want to see more of? Leave a comment/message!)  
Sooo... instead of blah blah and an epilogue. I will go deeper in and then maybe do some time jumps instead so we all can get some nice fluff (and maybe some more drama... hehe...).  
It would be mean to end with one chapter + epilogue where Brittana would actually be together without any obstacles, which was the original idea.  
I just hope y'all will like what's about to come as the story continues!  
If anyone got any ideas for where you want this story to gooooo, then I always take your inputs seriously!

I absolutely loved all of your comments and messages for the last chapter (I always do, but some of you left longer comments this time)! Thanks for being there!  
I definitely write faster (and longer updates) when you guys leave reviews! *hint hint*

**snixxjuice214**: She did indeed tell the world she loves Santana! Not sure if I'd dare to do that!

**Guest: **I'm glad you liked it, and I hope you'll like this chapter!

**Ivy888:** I know, right! Laura is absolutely adorable.  
Guess Santana didn't think clearly when she hung out with Joanne!  
Your guesses are pretty good too!

**WhatIsWrongWithYou: **True! Maybe we'll see if it was magazine headline worthy?

**definitelyalopez: **Here it is! Enjoy! (:

**Guest: **Hey! You calling my fic stupid now? Go away! No, just kidding! Thanks for liking it! (:

**DeWolffHopper: **Thanks! We'll see how it changes everything... NOW!

You'll notice that this starts just a short moment after where the last part ended.  
Let me know if there's something major wrong with the story, if it seems like I forgot some part. (I tend to start writing here and there when I write...)  
Don't own Glee, characters, blah blah...

**Emotional Roller coaster, part 8529485! Here we go...**

* * *

**CHAPTER 15**

Apparently the next host where nowhere to be found.  
April Rhodes. She was the founder and CEO of the biggest model agency in the US. Also, Brittany's agency. _Rhodes & Rhodes_.  
The moment the host said that they would take a short break, the whispering began.

_Where's April?  
I heard she stole some liquor and got kicked out.  
I heard she stole some liquor and set it on fire.  
I heard she kicked Bryan Ryan in the nuts once.  
I heard she's a secret agent working undercover.  
I heard she kidnapped some of the models backstage.  
I heard she danced on top of the bar.  
Someone shot April Rhodes!_

Brittany was glad that they weren't whispering about her, but she couldn't care less about gossip about her agency mother right now. Not that she didn't like April, because she did. And the fact that April insisted on all of them calling her their "agency mother" was pretty funny.  
But she just had to get out of this room and get away from the brown eyes she was sure was following her every move.

A tired Laura was still sitting in her lap.  
She told the girl that she had to go away for a while and that maybe it would be the best if she went back to her mother.  
Laura pouted and looked sleepily at her, but nodded in agreement. She had, after all, been sitting in the lap of her idol for over an hour and a half, she couldn't wait to tell her friends about this evening.  
_They will be sooooo jealous_... the little blonde giggled at her own thought.

After a quick call to Laura's mother, she came inside the big hall to pick up her daughter by their table. Brittany was happy that she had gotten a new friend this evening. She had spent time with a lovely girl, whom she had a lot of things in common with. They made promises to hang out again sometime soon. Since Brittany now had mummy Laura's phone number, she could call for play dates whenever she would have the time, which the blonde girl agreed to by jumping up and down and repeatedly shouted "yes".

After she had left Laura to her mother, she made a beeline towards the toilets.  
She could hear someone tell some person to stop. But she didn't turn around to see if the voice was talking to her. Though, she did have an idea who the person was.

She walked so fast that she completely missed the footsteps that was coming closer to her. It wasn't until someone grabbed her around the wrist that she flinched and stopped. The hand was certainly bigger than Laura's. She turned around, only to meet those brown eyes that she had expected to only see in her dreams from now on.

"Brittany..." Santana said almost breathlessly and looked at Brittany with pleading eyes. "Stop, please."

But Brittany had already stopped. When she felt Santana loosen her grip she grabbed the Latinas hand and dragged her with her to a restroom in the almost empty part of the building. She let go of Santana's hand and quickly looked inside the different stalls, making sure that no one was in there. When she was sure that they were alone, she once again grabbed Santana's hand, enjoying the feeling of it one last time, she pushed the Latina into the handicapped stall, since it was the biggest.

"_What_?" Brittany turned around and hissed the moment she locked the door to the bathroom stall, without trouble this time. She made sure that there was a lot of space between them, and she almost pushed herself against the door.

"I... what's the matter?" Santana asked as she looked up at Brittany. When she met those blue eyes that she loves, she was surprised to see tears. She really hated seeing the usually cheery blonde like this, especially since she had a feeling that it might be her fault that the blonde was on the verge of crying.

"What's the matter with _me_?" Brittany bit back sarcastically.

"Britt..." Santana tried to reach forward to Brittany.

"Don't."

"But..."

"No!" Brittany said forcefully.

"Let me just..."

"Santana." Brittany said desperately, her head came down to rest in her palms. She really didn't want this conversation to be a fight. She wanted them to get over with this and leave on good terms.

"Please..."

"I know what you're trying to do." Brittany murmured into her hands.

"Wha..."

"You think you're so _smart_. Thinking that I'm so... so... _stupid..._" Brittany tried to hold back a sob, but Santana still heard. "Thinking that I don't understand what you're trying to do. Manipulating..." She didn't even try to hold back the sobs now and she couldn't complete the sentence either. She didn't even believe her own words. She _knew_ that Santana loved her, but the Latina had never actually verbalized her feelings, and that's the thing that was a bit frightening. Not that she herself had done it until tonight, but still.  
She really thought that Santana would leave her for that other blondie that Santana had brought with her tonight. But the thought itself, of Santana not really loving her back, made her let out a loud yelp.

"Britt, it's not like that." Santana mumbled.

"You bring _Joanne Starr_ here, and walk around with her like she's the best thing that have ever happened to you." Brittany whispered out, she couldn't help but sound disgusted when she said _her_name. She was hurt by her own words.

"But _you_are the..."

"Santana. I can't do this anymore." the model said and pointed between her and Santana before letting out another yelp.

"What?" Santana said stunned. "I don't... what do you mean?"

"Us." Brittany sniffled. "If there even is an _us_."

"Of course there is an _us._ It has always been and there will always be an _us_between you and me." this made Brittany full out crying. Tears were streaming down her pale cheeks and the mascara was running.

"Don't do this to me. I can't... we can't... I don't think... we can't... together..." Brittany said in between sobs. She was speaking incoherent, but the message got through.

Santana ignored what Brittany was telling her.  
The blonde couldn't possibly mean what she was saying, because if she did, Santana would break on spot.  
Santana couldn't take it anymore. She couldn't, wouldn't, didn't want to see Brittany like this. It hurt her as much as it probably hurt Brittany, if not more. So instead of just standing there like a stunned doofus, she reached forward and engulfed the girl she loved in a tight embrace. It hurt to feel Brittany struggle against her, but she did her best to hold her firmly against herself and after a few minutes Brittany had calmed down.  
Santana felt her dress get wet by salty tears, and it was probably stained by mascara too, but right now she couldn't care less about her dress. She stroked the blonde hair and enjoyed the softness of it, and having Brittany in her arms.  
The room was so quiet it was almost scary. The only noises were Santana's heavy breathing and Brittany's sobs mixed with hiccups.

"I have missed you." Santana whispered as she kept holding on to Brittany for dear life. "I've missed you a lot."

Santana felt Brittany relax in her arms and the blonde nuzzled her head closer. She let out a content sigh at the feeling of having Brittany this close.

"I have missed you too." Brittany whispered.

"I'm sorry." Santana said a little louder. Brittany didn't reply, so she continued. "I'm so sorry. Please don't be mad at me." Still no reply from Brittany. "We're just friends, you know. Me and Joanne."

Brittany let out a loud sigh. She knew that she had made assumptions too quickly. But _everything_tonight had pointed towards the fact that Santana didn't want to be with her.

"I'm not mad at you." Brittany whispered before letting out another sob.

"But you were, weren't you?"

"No." Brittany kept her voice low. "I could _never_ be mad at you. I was just..." _jealous._

"I know what you mean." Santana smiled sadly.

"I don't understand how you do it." Brittany said and sniffled.

"Huh?" Santana looked up from the crook of Brittany's neck where she had nuzzled her head.

"You just seem so calm when I'm with him. You have never freaked out on me. Maybe you're just used to it."

"No, I'm definitely not used to it." Santana smiled again. "It hurts every single time I see you two together. And I do freak out, I just, I try not to show it." Santana let out a loud sigh.

"When I saw you and Joanne. I couldn't stop looking. You looked so happy and it was like..." Brittany gulped and Santana tightened her grip even further, to show that she was here for her. "It was like you didn't need me to make you happy."

"That's not true though." Santana moved her hand up to brush her thumb against Brittany's wet cheek. "You make me the happiest."

"But I can't know for sure."

"I just hope that you'll trust me then." Santana said and smiled as Brittany looked at her.

At that moment, Brittany saw so much love and devotion inside Santana. She wasn't even sure how she could've ever doubted that. She didn't need Santana to vocally tell her how much she loved her.  
The way she held her, the way she brushed her cheek... the way she looked at her, it was proof enough of Santana's unspoken feelings. Because Santana looked at her as if _she_was the best thing that had ever happened to her.

* * *

They held onto each other for what felt like hours. Listening to each other's heartbeats, inhales and exhales. The ceremony had probably started up a long time ago because they could hear the applause through the door. But they didn't care about that. It wasn't like they had any more awards to pick up.  
Right now, they were trying to fight for far better awards. Each other.

"I'm not very good with feelings." Santana begun and exhaled deeply. "But when you said that, that you love me..." she turned up to meet Brittany's still puffy eyes. "I knew that I had been a coward for too long."

"I'm sorry for calling you a coward that one time..." Brittany said shyly.

"It's true though." Santana snorted as she remembered how Brittany had hurt her pride when she had called her a coward. She wiped beneath Brittany's eyes. "I'm sorry for waiting so long to say this. I really wanted to be the first one to say it." Santana felt her face heat up under Brittany's gaze, but she didn't look away. She kept her eyes on Brittany's before saying the three words herself.  
"I love you." she said quietly.

"What did you say?" Brittany bit her lip, her insides were exploding with feelings. This time it was all good feelings. She had heard Santana clearly. She just wanted her to say it again. And again. And again...

"I love you." Santana said a little louder. "I love you, Britt."

"Uh-huh." Brittany smiled and her partly sad face turned into one filled with happiness. "Can you say it again, please?" she asked innocently as she kept biting her lip.

"I love you, I love you, I love you..." Santana repeated and nudged her nose against Brittany's neck. Her lips accidentally brushed against Brittany's collarbones and she let them linger there for longer than necessary.  
Santana loved the smell of Brittany, it was so sweet, almost like candy. And definitely as addicting as those nerds candies Rachel usually bought for her.

Her breath hitched the moment she felt Santana's soft lips on her collarbones and she almost let out a loud moan right then and there.  
The Latina moved her plump lips against her pale skin in a painfully slow pace. A moment later she felt Santana's warm tongue swipe along her clavicle before she sucked lightly, but not enough to leave a hickey.

"Santana." Brittany groaned. "Up here."

Santana did as she was told and only lingered on the collarbone for a short while before leaving a trail of kisses up along Brittany's neck and jaw. She left red lipstick marks all along.  
She soon reached her destination.

"I love you."

The next second Santana's lips were on hers and she was pressed up against the wall.  
Santana's hair fell down at the back as she accidentally pulled out one of the bobby pins holding up the faux bob. She didn't really care. She was busy enjoying the feeling of Santana's lips moving against hers for the first time in months.  
She let out a moan as Santana deepened the kiss and her tongue brushed against hers, before they began to massage each other.  
They stood like that for what would probably win an award for the longest kiss if it would've been recorded. Little did they know...

As they broke apart for much needed air, Brittany felt Santana brush her thumb against her lower lip. It was a gesture that made her heart beat even faster. She couldn't contain her happiness in that moment and an smile tugged at her lips.

"I'm still with him. You know." Brittany mumbled as they stared lovingly at each other.

"Oh..." Santana said, not breaking the eye contact. She was a little surprised and she was certainly a little hurt by the fact that Brittany, and herself, had opened up like that while Brittany apparently still was in another relationship. But she couldn't be mad.

"But I plan on breaking up with him next week when he comes back from his trip. I promise." Brittany assured and stroked the Latina's cheek. "I want to be with you." she whispered.

They once again closed the gap between their lips. Hands began to roam as their lips moved together in a passionate dance. Their eyes fluttered closed and the only thing on the girls minds were each other.

They were so into each other that they didn't notice the shadow that was yet again creeping above them.

But what made them come out of their trance was the light of a camera flash going off over and over again and the sound of someone whispering "oh, crap".

They jumped away from each other. Brittany with Santana's red lipstick smeared all over the place and running mascara down her cheeks. Santana with her ruffled hair and also with smeared lipstick. To an outsider, they'd probably look like hell. But to each other, they still looked beautiful. But their respective thoughts didn't linger there for very long.

Both of them looked up towards the roof. They didn't see anyone. But Santana did caught the sight of hair from the stall next to them, to the right. And she definitely recognized that hairdo.

"Jewfro!" Santana roared and quickly unlocked the door before bolting out through their stall and kicked the other door open to the stall next to theirs.

"Hello Santana. We meet again." Jacob said in his sneaky little voice as he sat curled up on the toilet seat, his feet placed on the lid.

"Give me that card now." Santana demanded through gritted teeth. "Or else you know that I will go all Lima Heights Adjacent on you."

"Oh, you will, huh?" Jacob said and waved with his camera, showing the record button.

So she couldn't go all Lima Heights on Jacob, because if she did, he would record it and post it online.

Santana needed that memory card because of different reasons. She knew that the photos, maybe even videos, on them were valuable for JBI, because the pictures of her and Brittany _making out_ would be breaking news on his shitty gossip site, which had grown and become one of the biggest gossip sites in the world, not because of its gossip, but for the laughs out of it. Most of it was just rumors without real evidence. But now, here was evidence. She could only imagine the possible headlines. '_Feisty photographer in fist fight' _or '_Miss Innocence 2012 goes Cheating'. _She knew those were lame, but thank the lord, she wasn't a journalist but just a simple photographer.

The photos, however, were also valuable for her and Brittany. This moment was their moment, not to be shared with the world. They didn't need the judgmental comments from strangers. But most importantly, for Brittany, she didn't want her to break up with Artie like this. It wasn't honorable and she knew that Brittany didn't want it like that. When she would be ready, she would do it, and Santana believed that now.

"Oh, and hello, _Brittany_." Jacob said cheekily as he caught sight of the blonde standing right behind Santana. He snapped yet another picture of the angry Latina with the surprised blonde right behind. _Funny, it almost looks like..._

"Hi." Brittany said awkwardly as she brushed her fingers against her lips and noticed the red color on her thumb."So, will you confirm that your little speech on stage was in fact a love confession towards one Santana Lopez?" Jacob said, pressing the record button and pointing the camera towards Brittany.

"You little shit. Give me that memory card. Now." Santana said exasperated and tried to reach forward to grab the camera from him.

"Uh-uh! You know how this works Santana."

"Enlighten me." Santana said sarcastically.

"Well, there's that one condition. But I'll give you some options."

Brittany recognized this man. It was the one that she had seen out on the red carpet earlier, whom she wasn't allowed to pose in front. But she had definitely seen him on other occasions as well. And she remembered them now. She had seen him creeping in bushes outside of her and Quinn's apartment, sometimes he had stalked her when she was out with friends, at other events, and so on.

"I saw that your roommate is here tonight. The lovely Miss Rachel Berry. I want her underwear. Used, of course."

"Are you kidding with me?" Santana shouted in disgust. "You fucking pervert."

"I've heard that one before." he smirked. "The second option would be Joanne Starr. I want a dance session with her."

"Yeah, right. You better pay up for that one." Santana crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. This was getting ridiculous.

"Third, and last option. Show me your boobs."

When Santana looked up at him she saw him staring at Brittany's cleavage. Who the _fuck_ did Jewfro think he was. Staring at _her_ girl like that. _Nuh-uh_.

"Don't you _dare_looking at her like that." Santana said warningly.

"Yeah? What are you going to do about that?" Jacob said and dangled his camera in front of her.

"Go all Lima Heights on you."

So Santana did what every normal person would've done in that position.  
She reached forward and slapped the shit out of Jacob until he let go and dropped his camera.  
It hit the ceramic tiles with a loud crash and small pieces of it flew here and there.  
The moment it hit the floor Santana stopped the slaps and bowed down to pick up the camera house. She popped open the memory card holder and took out the small card that held so much information. She also made sure to take out the battery. She could now only hope that Jacob either forgot to bring an extra battery or extra memory cards.  
Then she handed over the remaining piece of the camera to the stunned man.

Brittany stood wide-eyed behind Santana. She didn't like violence. But when Santana did something like this to protect her, well... she liked it. Plus. Santana was totally hot when she went all _Lima Heights Adjacent. _It was definitely a newly discovered turn on, but on the other hand, everything Santana did was kind of hot."What have you done to my baby!" Jacob shouted as he looked at his camera, which had a few missing pieces here and there. The zoom lens seemed to still be intact though.

"You should've thought about that before you did some stupid shit to _my _baby." she glared at the paparazzi.

_My baby_. Brittany liked the sound of it. Oh, the effect Santana had on her, even after she thought that she would lose her...

"It was expensive..." Jacob cried out.

"Yeah, I know." Santana said, she definitely knew how expensive those things were.

"You'll pay for this. Now."

"Forget it. Get out." Santana said. She was tired of this bullshit. She felt Brittany grabbing her hand from behind and she loved the feeling inside of her whenever the blonde would touch her. She just wanted to have some more alone time with Brittany.

"Show me your boobs." Jacob said and this time, he stared at Santana's cleavage.

Santana saw red. She couldn't believe this pervert.  
She had just ruined his camera, stolen his battery and memory card, she had slapped him in the face over and over, and Santana's left bitch slap was not something you played around with.

"Out! Get the fuck out of here now, you creep! This is the ladies room!" she spat.

"No. I want a peek first."

"Seriously?" Santana said warningly.

"Yes. I promise that I won't mention you or Brittany on my website." he said cheekily. Oh, he thought he was so smart. But then he would've picked his battles more carefully. She let go of Brittany's hand and instantly missed the warm feeling of it.

"If you as much as mentions me or Brittz on your blog, I will come and hunt you down with a scissor and cut off your balls. If you got any, that is." Santana said with venom laced in her voice. "Then I will make them into rocky mountain oysters and feed them to the ocean." she leaned in and glared at Jacob. Her heaving chest was only inches away from his face. But then she quickly moved away and grabbed him in the ear and dragged him up from the toilet lid. He nearly fell to the floor where some small pieces from the camera were still strewn.  
He hissed and begged her to let go of him, but she kept dragging him out of the stall and out of the restroom. She closed the door after her and locked the door, which, apparently her and Brittany must have forgotten to do before they entered.

* * *

Jacob Ben Israel interrupting their little moment, made them realise that they actually looked pretty horrible. They pointed and giggled at each other.  
They could definitely not walk out before fixing their hair and makeup.  
Unfortunately, none of them had any new makeup to apply. So that meant one thing. Au natural.  
They began to remove their makeup with lukewarm water and a bunch of paper towels.  
Santana, because of the red lipstick that was smeared all around her mouth, which made her look sick.  
Brittany, because of the runny mascara and Santana's trail of lipstick she had left on her collarbone and neck. And also because of the lipstick she had around her own lips.  
Santana thought it looked sexy, especially on the neck. But she understood that Brittany had to wash it away. It would look suspicious if someone would catch her with lipstick marks all over the place.

The silence that took over when they washed and fixed their disheveled hair, was a great opportunity for Brittany to break the ice about one topic that had haunted her the whole evening.

"What did Jacob mean with dance session? With Joanne." Brittany thought it was a great opener. She didn't want to jump straight to the big question. Because what if Santana and Joanne had actually been an item in the past.  
Santana had a lot to explain about Joanne.

"I'll tell you the story about Joanne some other time."

"I want to know now." Brittany said demanding with a raised eyebrow. She was still suspicious as to who exactly Joanne was to Santana.

"Fine. I'll tell you now." Santana realised that whatever Brittany would ask for, she would probably give it to her. If Brittany would want a sportscar, she would probably rush out to the nearest car dealer and get her one. If she wouldn't afford it she would probably go rob a bank.

"She was an exchange student from England. We all went to the same high school during senior year. Me, Rachel, Quinn and Joanne.  
She lived with me and my family for a year before moving back. She's my best friend. She's like a sister to me, really." Santana smiled and shrugged.

"This is so embarrassing." Brittany mumbled and covered her face as she felt it heat up.

This was really awkward. Just moments ago she had been so jealous at Joanne that she could've walked straight over to her and slapped her, if she'd have a scissor she would've walked up to her and cut off all that long blonde hair. But she didn't, because she didn't like violence. But now it seemed like all the jealousy and paranoia had been nothing, because they were just friends, like _sisters_.

"You've never... you know...?" Brittany asked. Just to be sure.

"What do you... oh!" Santana said wide-eyed as realisation hit her. "No. Never. _Gross_."

"Good." Brittany mumbled.

"Anyway. As Joanne moved back to London, she began her model career. As and adult model and entertainer. She does a lot of dancing."

"What?" Brittany said in surprise.

"Yeah, I know. Her name's not even Starr. It's Thompson." Santana smiled. "I didn't really approve of her career choice when she told me. I still don't. But it's her life and as long as she's safe and she wants to do it, I guess it's fine with me. She's really successful too." Santana shrugged.

"Wow. I could never have guessed it. I kind of..." Brittany wasn't sure if she was going to admit this now when she knew this little fact about Joanne. But what the hell. "I kind of recognise her."

"You do?" Santana said and raised an eyebrow as she looked at herself in the mirror. She was certainly amused.

"Yeah." Brittany said. "But not from porn!" she quickly added.

This made Santana laugh. Surely Joanne had done some porn flicks in her days, but it wasn't like that was what she usually did. She did photo shoots like every other model, the only difference was that she wore a lot less clothes, sometimes she even wore these leather outfits with whips... and... yeah... maybe some different poses too.  
Santana had seen some pictures, but mostly she found it awkward to look at one of her best friends like that. She had never seen Joanne as something more than a friend.

"Oh really?" Santana teased. "Why? You don't like porn?"

"What... yes... no... I mean... I don't..."

"Relax, babe. I'm joking." Santana said and smiled.

"Tell me more." Brittany mumbled. She didn't like Santana's teasing, but she did like the term of endearment.

"Well. She used to send these postcards with her on them to me and my family." Santana smiled at the memory of her mother getting one of those cards once. She was glad that they had been sent in envelopes so the mailman hadn't seen them, but it could've given her mum a heart attack.

"Really?" Brittany said, mouth agape.

"Yeah, I think my dad liked them." she snorted in disgust at the thought of her father looking at her best friend like that.

"That's gross." Brittany said. She was certainly intrigued. This new information about Santana's best friend was definitely something she didn't see coming.

"Well, I was the one who photographer her first." Santana said proudly. "With clothes on though!" she quickly added as she realised what she had said.

That's when Brittany remembered why she recognized Joanne. She had seen Santana's photos of her. Joanne had looked younger, and smaller breasts and less plump lips. She saw the photograph in front of her. She wasn't going to tell Santana that though.

"Is she gay?" Brittany asked after a few moments of silence. She couldn't help herself. She was too curious.

"Yeah, is it that obvious? She usually goes on and on about how people always assume that she's straight because she _looks too hot to be a lesbian_."

"I hate when that happens!" Brittany exclaimed. She had heard that one way too many times, even though she wasn't a lesbian, she still liked girls. _A girl_. "I think she flirted with me..." she continued, thinking back at the wink and smirk Joanne sent her earlier that evening.

"Oh, she did, alright." Santana huffed. "I've already told her to keep her hands away from you."

"You did?" Brittany said surprised. She felt her heart swell at the thought of Santana wanting to have her all to herself. Even though she would prefer if Santana didn't go Lima Heights on everyone. She didn't like Artie's possessiveness, but this, this she could do.

"Well... yeah." Santana said carefully. "You're not weirded out by it or anything?" she blurted out.

"What? No, of course not. I think it's cute." Brittany smiled and leaned in to peck Santana on the lips. The Latina flushed for what felt like the thousand time that evening.

"Good..."

"I don't think she was interested in me anyway." Brittany continued.

"Why do you think that?" Santana knew that Joanne liked beautiful blonde's and well, Brittany definitely fit into that category.

"I just got the feeling that there was something going on between her and Rachel. Like, Rachel tried to make her jealous or something." Brittany shrugged.

"What?" Santana said before letting out a loud laugh.

"She likes Quinn then?"

"Yeah, I guess. She has always had a thing for blonde's, and especially Fabray. Even in high school she tried to get it on with her. I guess that Quinn was in denial back then, but I don't think she's interested in Joanne anyway. Especially not now when she got it bad for Berry."

"So that's what that was..." Brittany pondered for a moment before going back to wiping her eyes with the wet paper towel.

"What was what?" Santana asked confused.

"You were talking to a blonde, right after the red carpet. You got a small note from her. I thought you were flirting..."

"No, it wasn't like that!" Santana said desperately. She didn't want Brittany to get sad again. "And you saw that?"

"Yeah. I know that it wasn't anything." Brittany smiled. "It was for Joanne, right? She likes blondes and you tried to hook her up with someone." Santana nodded.

Brittany was spot on. That was what she had been trying to do.  
She had been talking about Brittany so much that she felt bad for her best friend who'd she finally met after over a year away from each other. That's why she had tried to introduce her to some new model faces she recognised from some polaroid shoots they had done together.  
She got the blonde's number. But Joanne didn't even want it.  
Santana recalled her friends saying something like "_I can get my own numbers. No one can resist the fine piece of ass that is Joanne Starr. And this smirk... oh yeah, baby..._" she had even fake moaned.

* * *

"Well, how do I look?" Brittany asked shyly as she was done removing the makeup. She did a little pirouette in front of Santana.

Santana met Brittany's eyes for a second, before eying the woman in front of her.  
Brittany was something special. Santana loved the freckles, especially the one right above her lip, the way her lips curled when she smiled bashfully like that, all of her smiles really... everything about Brittany was beautiful.

"You look beautiful."

"Really? You think so?" Brittany asked really quick before turning back to the mirror. "I think I look kind of..."

"No. You're really beautiful, Britt."

"Well, if you say so. You don't look so bad yourself." Brittany said as she eyed Santana from the side of the mirror before turning around so she was facing the brunette again.

"Do you think... can you..." Santana was looking for the right words for this proposition. "Do you want to come home with me tonight? I would love to sleep with you." her face warmed up again and her cheeks became slightly redder. "I-I didn't mean it like that." Santana stuttered and shook her head. _Idiot._

"No?" the blonde feigned hurt. "What did you mean then?" Brittany bit her lip to hold her giggles intact and looked at Santana expectantly.

"I meant that I want to sleep with you." Santana tried to explain, but realized that she said the same thing again. At least it made Brittany snort. _Cute._ "I want to sleep _next_ to you. Okay. There. I got it right, didn't I?"

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes, I want to sleep _next_ to you." Brittany said again and brushed her lips against Santana's. "Even though I'd much rather _sleep_ on top of you." she whispered seductively as she leaned closer to Santana's ear. A cocky grin spread over her lips as she saw Santana's mouth form an 'o'-shape.  
Yes, she was stepping her game up now when she had had a taste of jealousy.

"Uh-huh..." Santana had closed her eyes and could only nod under Brittany's breathy whisper. She got startled when she heard a rustling by the door. She opened her eyes and saw that Brittany was on her way out already. "Where-where are you going?" she asked desperately after the retreating blonde. She couldn't just let her out of sight now. "Did I do something wrong?" Santana asked, her voice wavering. She followed Brittany's footsteps, clearly confused as to why the blonde was leaving so abruptly.

"You said your place, right?" Brittany turned around and sent the Latina a wink accompanied by a shy smile.

* * *

They were sneaking out of the venue through one of the back doors. They figured that the paparazzi's would be waiting outside the main entryway, just waiting for the moment when someone would walk out. They were just about to get into a cab. Right when they thought they had succeeded without anyone noticing, they heard someone shout...

"Britty!"

Both Brittany and Santana turned around and saw little Laura waving towards them with a big smile. This lady was obviously smarter than the media people.

"Hi Britty!" she said again as she jumped down the steps towards Brittany and Santana. Laura was now sporting a turquoise down jacket over her spangled dress. Her eyes were drooping and it was apparent that the girl was really tired by now, and rightfully so. It was starting to get late, and definitely past curfew for a five year old.

"Are you stalking me?" Brittany bowed down and booped Laura's nose, which caused the girl to giggle.

"Nooo..." Laura dragged out before looking innocently at Brittany.

"You _so_are! You little..." Brittany began to tickle Laura who burst out laughing at the way her newfound friend was nudging her ribs.

"Stop it!" Laura shouted in-between a fit of giggles. "Please!"

"Fine." Brittany huffed and let go of the, still giggling, girl. "I thought you were with your mommy?"

"Yeah, but I wanted to ask you something first."Laura looked up and bit her lip.

"Yes, go on." Brittany smiled at the girls antics.

"Is it her?" Laura whispered and pointed towards Santana who stood, almost hidden, behind the yellow car door.

Santana's eyes widened in surprise as the girl pointed at her, she recognized her as the one who sat in Brittany's lap during the ceremony. And well, maybe she had been a little bit jealous at her for being able to do so, but yeah. She still had no idea why a random girl was pointing at her and whispering something, only to grin after receiving a nod from Brittany.

"Yeah, it's her." Brittany whispered and Laura's eyes gleamed with happiness. Maybe she was young and didn't understand anything, but she definitely knew that this girl was someone really important to her idol.

"She's super pretty!"

"Told you!" Brittany poked the giggling Laura again. "Almost as pretty as you though." she winked at Laura who's face turned beat red.

"Laura! I'm leaving without you soon!" they heard Laura's mother call from the door.

"Coming mummy!" she shouted back. "Gotta go Britty. I don't want to be left here alone." Laura pouted. "Pinky promise to play soon?" she said and reached out her her pinky.

"Definitely." Brittany took Laura's pinky in hers. "Maybe I'll bring her too." she moved her head as if to show that she was talking about Santana.

"That would be awesome!"

* * *

Santana had texted Rachel and told her to stay at Quinn's for the night, she also told her to bring all the clothes they left in the wardrobe, as well as their awards. They told Rachel that she and Brittany had to leave because of an _emergency_, but that they didn't have to worry. She was sure that their friends could see right through that lie though.  
Really, they just didn't want anyone to notice their early departure.  
She sent one text to Joanne where she said how sorry she was for just leaving her, but that their dinner date for the next day would still stand.

A few minutes later her phone buzzed. One new message.

_From The Hottest Piece of Ass:  
Yeah, thanks for bailing. I'm fallin asleep here.  
Guess you did your thang with the Lopez charm? See ya' 2morrow hotstuff! (-;_

* * *

So here they were, sitting in their dresses in the chilly February night. At least they weren't outside. They were sitting quietly in a cab that would take them to Santana's apartment. None of them were sure of what to say, so they didn't say anything. They didn't sit close to each other, but their hands were intertwined between them.

Santana was the one to break the silence.

"Who was that girl?"

"What girl?"

"The little girl, the blonde one." Santana tried to explain, hoping that it was enough. Had there been more than one girl?

"Oh, you mean Laura. Yeah. She was just a girl I met today." the blonde said casually and smiled as she let her eyes fall at their hands and she felt Santana tighten her grip. "I'll introduce you to her one day."

"That sounds great." Santana smiled at Brittany before she moved closer to the other girl and let her head rest on the blonde's shoulder. Soon enough, she felt Brittany rest the side of her head on hers.

* * *

"Wow."

It was the first word Brittany said as she got inside Santana and Rachel's apartment.  
She had actually never been there. Her own roommate had spent lots of time there since she officially got together with Rachel, but she herself had never been there before. Whenever she'd hang out with Santana they would usually spend time at hers and Quinn's place our somewhere outside.

"Right, you've never been here before."

"No, but it looks really nice. It's huge!" Brittany said as she entered the hall.

"Yeah..."

"Aren't you going to give me a tour?"

"Do you want one? It's not really..."

"Of course I want one! This is where you and Rachel live! And Quinn talks about how awesome it's here all the time!"

"Quinn talks about our apartment?"

"Well, yeah. Maybe I shouldn't have told you that."

"No, no. That's fine. I won't tell her. But come on now." Santana said and grabbed Brittany's hand in hers.

"After you m'lady." Brittany said as Santana began to lead her around the duplex.

* * *

It was a really nice apartment. Like, really nice. It was spacey and clean with nice and expensive interior. Definitely more than her own budget would allow..  
Since it was a duplex, she learned that Rachel and Santana had different parts of the house.

They had a few rooms left, when Santana lead her to...

"You have a studio here too?" she said in surprise. She had been to her other studio, which was a whole house. This wasn't as big. But it was definitely enough to take headshots and portraits. She had been in smaller studios before.

"Yeah. Come on, we'll take a picture together." Santana smiled and lead Brittany inside.

"I don't have any make-up on." Brittany mumbled.

"As if you need any. You're beautiful." Santana said as she turned around and looked deeply in Brittany's blue eyes.

Santana let go of the warm hand she was holding and went over to pick up her camera. She put the camera on the tripod and grabbed the self-timer. She changed a few settings and turned on the soft boxes to get a nice light.

They position each other in front of the camera until they turned to each other. Brittany was just going to ask something when Santana pressed the button and the whole room lit up for a second.

"Hey! I wasn't ready!" Brittany shouted.

"Sorry, I had to." Santana giggled.

Brittany shut her eyes and leaned in so that their noses nudged. Santana pressed the button again.

For the next photo she moved her head a little to the left. She pressed herself closer until she felt Santana's lips brush against hers. Santana pressed the button again.

"I have missed this." Brittany mumbled against soft lips before Santana pressed the button again.

* * *

Fifteen pictures and a lot of laughs later, they were ready to head for the bed. Brittany asked if she could borrow some clothes from Santana, which of course she could. Santana wouldn't have minded a Brittany in underwear. But she knew that it was not time for that yet.

"Do you have a toothbrush I can borrow?" Brittany asked and peeked out from the bathroom, holding up a red toothbrush that she assumed belonged to Santana. She wouldn't mind using Santana's, but she wouldn't want to gross out the Latina by using it.

"Sure. I got a new one for you, if you want." Santana said and turned around to look towards the bathroom where she saw Brittany dressed in her t-shirt and shorts, holding up her toothbrush. Santana couldn't believe how stunning Brittany looked in a casual attire like that.

"That'd be great. Can I keep it here? I mean... if that wouldn't be too much?"

"Of course, I wouldn't want it any other way." Santana smiled and walked inside the en-suite bathroom and opened one of the cabinets where she found a new toothbrush.

Brittany thanked Santana by pecking her on the lips as she got the new, blue, toothbrush. She smiled at the thought of having her own toothbrush at Santana's place. She had never had one like that before. She knew that this meant that she probably would be staying at Santana's a lot in the future. At least she hoped so.  
She also made a mental note to go shopping for a toothbrush for Santana to keep at her place as soon as possible.

* * *

They were laying in bed together, but not next to each other, as Santana had requested.  
They had started with laying on different sides of the big bed, but had slowly moved so that they were lying on each other. Well, Santana was laying on Brittany.

The room was silent, until Santana decided to break it.

"About you breaking up with Artie..."

"Yeah?"

"Just. Don't do it for me, okay? Do it for you. Because you want it and because you deserve it. You deserve someone who loves you. Whether it's me or someone else." Santana said as she listened to Brittany's heartbeats. "But I really want it to be me." she added.

"I do. I do want to. I want to be able to lay next to you like this, to go out without caring who sees us, take you out for dinner, hold your hand, to kiss you..." Brittany took a short pause as she looked at the brown eyes staring at her in the darkness. "I want to be able to _feel_like this without having to feel bad about it."

"You feel bad about having feelings for me?" Santana asked, taken aback.

"No, no, I don't feel bad about my feelings for you." Brittany cleared out and moved her hand up to cup Santana's cheek. "But I'm cheating on him with you, both physically and emotionally. I've done it for so long." she said honestly and Santana nodded. She understood.

"Just so you know. Afterwards. When it's over between you two. I will wait for you if it takes longer for you to let go completely." Santana mumbled. She would wait. Always.

"You're the most amazing person ever." Brittany said and snuggled closer to Santana before pulling her up to her face for a lingering kiss.

A comfortable silence filled the room afterwards.  
But Santana still had one question on her tongue.

"How are you going to do it?"

* * *

She had never slept this good in... ever. Her and Santana's limbs were a tangled mess.

She woke up early because of her phone going off. She ignored the call and put her phone on silent and soon enough she fell asleep again with her body underneath Santana's who was splayed over her.

She didn't hear the second, nor the third call...

She finally woke up at 10AM when she noticed that a source of warmth had disappeared. She figured that Santana must have woken up recently and didn't want to wake her up.

She had a distant memory of getting a call earlier, so she decided to check her phone. She was right. She noticed that she had three missed calls, all of them from Kurt. Four new text messages. From Kurt.

_**Received 6.50AM:** Where did you go last night? Are you okay?_

_**Received 7.30AM:** Brittany, I'm getting worried._

It was cute that her friend was worried about her. Maybe she should've told him where she went, but she thought that Rachel would inform the other's if they'd ask.

_**Received 8.44AM:** EMERGENCY!_

_**Received 8.53AM:**Call me when you see this!_

Her chest tightened and her head began to spin upon reading the last two texts. Kurt would never call out an emergency, unless something major would've happened. She could only picture a few scenarios that would cause such an emergency situation...

She was just about to call back to Kurt when she saw Santana enter the room.

Brittany couldn't read her expression, but there was something about the way that Santana looked at her that certainly got her a bit worried.

"Good morning." Santana said and forced out a smile. In reality, Santana _was_ really happy to have Brittany there this morning. But the news that had been sent her way, not so much excitement there.

"Hi." Brittany said and bit her lip nervously.

"Do you think... do you think you can come out to the living room for a second?"

"Well. Sure. Has something happened?" Brittany asked worriedly as she threw away the blanket she was wrapped in.

Santana didn't answer her question until they stood right in front of each other. Brittany leaned in for a good morning kiss, which Santana gladly returned before opening her mouth.

"Yeah." Santana whispered. "I'm really sorry, Britt. I know that you didn't want this to happen. But we've done our best and we think we got it under control now." she said and cupped Brittany's face.

"What? What are you talking about?" Brittany asked bewildered as she looked into Santana's brown eyes.

"Well, come with me. Everyone's waiting for us." Santana said and let go of Brittany's cheek and grabbed her hand instead.

Brittany was confused. She had no idea what was going on. What was under control? Who's everyone?

She didn't even realize that Santana had lead her into the big living room until she heard Kurt greeting her.

What was Kurt doing in Santana's apartment?

She looked around and saw that both Rachel and Quinn were there too.

_This is not good. So not good... _especially not since she heard Santana mumble to Rachel. "I'll slay him. I'll fucking kill him. I even _warned_ him. He's getting rocky mountain oysters. And then I'll come to him and make his into those..."

* * *

"So you guys are telling me that Jacob Ben Israel began speculating about me on his website? Which later spread to a bunch of other blogs. But that you got it under control?" Brittany said as she tried to get a grip of what had happened during the morning hours.

"Yeah, we noticed it in the early stages. It had only been online for about fifteen minutes until we made him delete it. But we're still estimating the amount of people seeing it on his site." Kurt answered his client, and friend.

"How did you make him delete it?" Brittany asked. She didn't think it would be that easy to make someone as stubborn as Jacob to just delete something from his precious site. Especially not after seeing what Santana had to do last night to get a hold of those pictures and possible videos from him.

"Well..." Kurt said before clearing his throat awkwardly.

The girls began to cough at the question and their eyes turned to Rachel who just looked down at her feet. None of them looked amused, especially not Quinn. She looked like she would rip out someone's throat. Santana looked angry as well, and possibly a little sad too.

"Panties." It was the only word Santana said, and immediately Brittany knew what had made Jacob delete the blog post. Her mind went back to the bathroom stalls where the pervy man had given them three different options on how they would get his memory card. One of them being Rachel's used panties. Apparently Santana's vicious words and left palm hadn't been enough for the gossip blogger, who got one of the things he wanted in the end.

"Quinn, sweetie, don't be mad at me. I haven't really sent him _my_ panties. I just bough a new pair."

"And if he wonder why they aren't used?" Quinn asked in disgust. She's wanted to gag by just thinking of this man who wants _her_ girlfriend's used underwear. Whenever she'd meet him she'd slap the shit out of him. She didn't know that that wouldn't be a very effective way to hurt him.

"I'll just tell him that the courier must've switched them or something."

"And he'll believe that?"

"I'm Rachel Barbra Berry, my name's on that package. Who wouldn't want to own something I've worn?" Santana, Kurt and Brittany stared at Rachel with wide eyes. They certainly didn't want to own anything from Rachel's wardrobe. And definitely not her underwear. Used or not. "Even though I really haven't worn them. But he isn't exactly smart." Rachel continued.

"Fine. But if this crap comes back and bites us in the..." Quinn said.

"Whatever. I'm going to send him a package too. Rocky Mountain oysters. He's going to love those." Santana said cheekily.

"What is that? It sounds pretty tasty. Marshmallows in oyster shells?" Quinn asked with a raised eyebrow as she thought of rocky mountain ice cream. _But why would Santana want to send something delicious to that piece of shit?_

"Fried bull testicles." Santana replied and smirked as she heard her friend's make all kinds of disgusting noises in unison.

* * *

"You can't assure that this won't get out to the bigger medias though? I mean, people will still be speculating even though JBI won't be the original source." Brittany turned the conversation back to more important things as she thought about the possibilities and what this could possibly lead to.

"That's correct. Even though JBI's credibility... well, there is none. He still brought up a subject that may not have been considered by other's until now. But remember that what people will write is only going to be speculation. At least until they got real evidence or a statement from one of you. Besides, this isn't the first time people are gossiping or spreading rumors about you two, even though they are different this time since it's about you two as a couple and not individuals." Kurt said, hoping that his friends wouldn't make a big deal about this. He was used to handling these kinds of situations.

"I assume that you're only talking about online medias, but what about the gossip magazines?" Santana asked curiously.

"There's a possibility that they might mention it in their pressed copies because this would be of interest. However, the gossip magazines have another code of honor, different work ethics, than JBI. They don't out people, and since Brittany has never stated anything about her sexuality, it would count as outing." Kurt explained as everyone nodded. "Maybe you guys can try and keep whatever it is you got going on under the radar for a while?" he continued and both women nodded again.

* * *

Brittany eyed the printed copy of the site and it's comments again.

**_JBI - Your Favorite Celebrity Insider_**

**_Just a friendly confession, or something more?_**

_Words and photography by Jacob Ben Israel._

The 26th annual Valentina Awards was held last night at the Mirror Theatre where some of the most influential fashionistas and celebrities were on the guest list.  
One of the big surprises of the evening might have been words spoken by the newly crowned Queen of The Runways and Newcomer of the Year, miss Brittany Pierce. In one of her acceptance speeches, the young model spoke about her love and appreciation for the New York City based photographer, Santana Lopez, who's famous for her feisty nature, but mostly for seducing models new to the industry.

Watch the video of the love confession after the jump!

Not only did that little confession start confusion. But who was the little child the young model was seen with? Is it hers? Has Brittany kept her away secretly? Why?

Has Brittany tamed the wildcat that is Santana or is she just another notch in the fiery Latina's bedpost?

Leave your comments and let us know!

TAGS: Gossip, Santana Lopez, Brittany Pierce, models, artists, LGBTQ, Valentina Awards, speeches, Fashion Lies Everywhere

* * *

_COMMENTS_

_ANONNONON: FUCK JBI! FUCK JBI! FUCK JBI!_

_Joe: First._

P: First.

Rosanna: She's totally just another notch in the bedpost. No doubts about it.

Dan: Who cares if it's a love confession or not. Let her have her own private life. She's just a human being like you and me.

S: Tell us something we didn't know already. She clearly got it bad for her, and I don't mind. I wouldn't mind her bf to become a single man... yum!

Tara: Oh God! I knew it all along! Wish I could've been there to see the most EPIC love declaration of all time! Too bad I'm not into fashion. I LOVE YOU BRITTANY! Ps. Santana is one lucky lady.

YH: This is ridiculous. What if they actually like each other, like, more than friends? You can't just fucking out people like that. Screw you, JBI.

B: They do kinda look like each ohter... I think she didn't want people to know that she had a child because that would make people go "nahh, no mommy models here please". But Britt is a total MILF!

AA: I know for a fact that Britt is a big fan of Santana, as in that she loves her work as an artist. They have even worked together. Besides, Brittany's still dating that guy from FLE, Artie Abrams? I highly doubt that she would ever do anything to harm him. He seems like a very kind and charming man. Plus. That's not her kid.

ANONNONON: DIE DIE DIE!

Monie: I don't care. What I do care about is the absolutely horrid person that Jacob Ben Israel is. This site sucks. And I'm only here to complain about him.

JBI: No one says you need to come here. I got evidence that they're hooking up. But someone stole it...

Anon: Someone stole the evidence? Sounds legit, guys. Move on!

Pete: Yeah. I don't believe it until they announce it themselves.

Another anon: How has she possibly been hiding a kid for years? That's just stupid. C'mon. Cousins maybe?

C.J.: We shouldn't be speculating in this.

* * *

Honestly? It wasn't such a big deal to her. She didn't mind people knowing about her being interested in Santana and it was pretty funny that they thought that her and Laura was related.

If it'd be fine with Santana that people knew about them, she'd also be fine with it. She wasn't out in the press, mostly because she didn't even know what her own sexuality was. People had been speculating about her sexuality as she was always close to her model friends of all genders on FLE.  
But no one had ever asked her. If they did ask, she wouldn't deny anything.  
She liked everyone. But she didn't like labels.  
If she likes Santana, then she liks Santana. Easy as that.

She still couldn't believe that her and Santana had confessed their love for each other the night before. And she couldn't believe it that she did it in front of all those people. Look what it lead to! A headache in the morning, but the best night ever.

The evening had started out so bad. But then it made a total U-turn. She was still a little embarrassed by it, but Santana didn't seem to care.

Their night together had been so intense. Brittany had told Santana about how she would go through with the breakup, she had cried a little but Santana was there to hold her and wipe away the tears. They repeated that they loved each other. Then they just stared at each other as they held each other tight. They had shared a few lazy kisses until both of them fell asleep, Brittany with Santana cuddled half on top of her.  
It had been perfect.

But the little bubble was broken and what really worried Brittany about this drama was what would happen if Artie knew she was _that_ kind of interested in Santana even before they were over. Sure, he knew that she kind of idolized her for her work, but to really love her for being _her_ and for idolizing her for being a great artist? It was a big difference.  
Plus, it kind of was his idea to, well, _re-introduce_ them to each other when he arranged his clothing line to be photographed by Santana with her as a model. He'd feel bad about it, surely.  
But she wasn't sure how he would take this whole thing.  
He was on vacation in France right now, and she wasn't sure if he kept himself updated. They hadn't spoken at all during the past days and he probably didn't go online that often, but his friends could read about it and then tell him.  
She didn't _want_ to know how Artie would react to this.  
Breaking up with him might be more difficult than what she originally thought. And she already thought that it would be reeeeally difficult...

On the other hand, did it really matter if Artie would get hurt or furious for a little while?  
It shouldn't matter, because Artie had hurt her for so long. But something inside of her made her feel bad for the poor soul, because she knew that she would break him.

But she also knew what she had to do. She needed Santana in her life, as more than just a secret.

* * *

**A/N: **This is probably the worst roller coaster I've given you all.  
Usually I just think that one of them are PMS:ing and got some crazy ass mood swings going on. But yeah. I can't just go around and blame my shit on them! That's just not fair...

WHAT'S BRITTANY'S BREAKUP PLAN? WHEN DO WE GET TO MEET JOANNE AGAIN? WHY DOESN'T LAURA'S MOTHER HAVE A NAME? I STILL WANT TO KNOW WHAT SANTANA SHOOK HANDS ON!

Gotta add another comment to one of the reviewers. Didn't want to spoil it up there. **Ivy888**!  
Cheezus. Your comment was on spot. I guess I did drop some hints (I love dem hints!)... but your mention of exchange student?  
Geez... I need to be more smooth next time! Was going to make Joanne Irish, but then that would've been way easier to guess because of Rory (apparently it still was easy!).  
At least you didn't mention what you thought Joanne worked with! I did drop quite a few hints at that too, like Kurt being gay and still knowing about Joanne, the different surname...

+ Not sure if any of you are noticing it. But Joanne is definitely inspired by Puck, but a female version!  
+ Are you guys feeling what might happen in the next chapter? Uh-ohhhh...


	16. Perfect Picture

**A/N:** So, the moment y'all have been waiting for is soon to come and I'm really scared that it's going to be one big disappointment.  
Anyway, let's hear a drumroll after all the replies below!

**Meech0831:**Demanding now, are we? (;

**The Hazel Eyed:** Haha! Yep, the Gods must have heard you!  
There will definitely be more Joanne, but not so much in this chapter. And I don't actually know if I'm going to use Laura's mother, haha!

**snixxjuice214:** Thank you! The bathroom was definitely my favourite part. I was like "FUCK JBI FUCK JBI!" when I wrote it.  
And you must have gotten that date idea from another fic, because I have definitely read that! Don't remember the name of it though...  
And it's leaning towards a longer story instead of a sequel!

**Britt-Britt's:**Thanks! I love Joanne too!

**M206:** I'm really sorry for taking so long, I know that no one actually likes it.  
But it's actually not so much about Artie's feelings. But it's more the fact that Brittany has to break up with someone.  
Hopefully the chapter will clear it out more, and I'll explain it at the bottom a/n too.

**dafuq33:**Maybe it's Artie who breaks up with her? (;

Let me know if there's any mistakes or something that I obviously must have missed... (yep, still scribbling here and there when writing...)

* * *

**CHAPTER 16**

The gossip about her and Brittany was gone with the wind the next day. It was like it never even had happened.  
Guess that's the beautiful thing about the A-list celebrities. There's always new pregnancies, new engagements, new divorces and new stars to hunt down when they go out for grocery shopping.  
She didn't approve of paparazzi's. They were like her, photographers. But still, their work ethics were so different and she didn't like what they did one bit.  
In fact, she had never had one good encounter with a paparazzi. Maybe it was because of her own stern self that made them more annoying. She had heard about people talking and introducing themselves to the paps like they're new friends, that was just ridiculous.  
But whatever, she was not one of those people.

Even if the speculation about her and Brittany had died down, it was still there, in the archives of the blogs and nagging in their own minds.  
She noticed that Brittany was worried. The blonde had even told her about her worries about Artie and their breakup. But Santana was there for her, to help and to guide her through it. Brittany needed to know that she was there for her, even during hard times like these.

Santana invited Brittany to come with her for dinner with Joanne, as a way to forget about the JBI drama for a while.  
Brittany had reluctantly agreed to it, saying how embarrassing it would be to finally meet the woman she thought would steal Santana away from her.  
Santana could say the same though, as she had thought that Joanne would take the blonde back to England.

The dinner had only been awkward for a short while as Brittany tried to avoid eye contact with the other blonde. When Joanne had asked Brittany to pass the salt, she accidentally pushed it outside the table so the salt cellar broke into a million pieces and salt was strewn over the floor.  
It wasn't the best way to keep themselves under the radar, since the other restaurant guests turned around to see what was going in.  
Spilling out the salt made Brittany realize that she couldn't act like that the whole evening, so she decided to actually engage in Santana's and Joanne's conversations, which turned out to be really interesting.  
She realized that she really liked Joanne and wouldn't mind spending more time with her. Not only did Joanne promise to never ever steal Santana away from her, but the Brit was easy to talk to, a good listener and definitely fun to be around. Brittany could definitely see herself and Joanne become great friends.

* * *

Brittany and Santana spent most of the next couple of days at Santana's and Rachel's place.  
Instead of having to go to Brittany's place to pick up clothes, they made Quinn pick up everything that was necessary for the five days long sleepover.  
They did all kinds of things together. They went out for runs and sometimes coffee, but when they went out to coffee shops or the grocery store they tried to keep themselves invisible. They didn't need to fuel the rumors, especially not since they agreed to keep themselves under the radar.  
But staying under the radar made them stay inside a lot too.  
They ate way too much take-out and they probably spent way too much time snuggling on the couch. They watched movies and played video games. They hung out with Joanne, Rachel and Quinn. They called over more friends for dinners and smaller parties.

* * *

Santana agreed to not sleeping in the same bed as Brittany, mostly because she was sure that she wouldn't be able to keep her hands off of the beautiful blonde if they'd spend another night together that close.  
Since she wanted to be the chivalrous one, she offered her bed to Brittany and said that she could sleep on the couch.  
Brittany didn't like the idea of not sleeping next to Santana since the first night had been so good, and since she was the guest, she insisted on taking the couch. But after much persuasion from Santana, Brittany agreed to taking the bed.

The first night with the new bed and couch rules, Santana woke up in the middle of the night as she heard someone tiptoeing around the couch. She raised up from the black furniture and was equally as surprised when she saw a startled Brittany stand a few feet away.  
Brittany told Santana in a hushed voice that she couldn't sleep, and asked if she could sleep on the couch instead, together with the Latina.  
It was a tight fit for the both of them, and for a moment, Santana wished that she just had agreed to taking the bed with Brittany from the start. But she soon let sleep take over as Brittany snuggled closer and wrapped her arms around her.

* * *

The fifth and last day together before Artie would come back home from France, Santana had promised to take Joanne to the airport. Brittany agreed to follow with her since she had started to take a liking in the other model.  
Since Joanne already was in the States, she was going on a little photo tour around the country, before coming back to New York to hang out a little more with her best friend before going back home to England.  
For three weeks Joanne would meet up with different photographer's who were interested in doing shoots with her. Everything from magazine's to private persons who had photography as their hobby.

Waving off Joanne at the airport was emotional for Santana. She knew that Joanne had done these kind of things before, the touring, but she couldn't help but become a little worried, seeing as the adult model would be meeting total strangers who would photograph her nude or in different poses that could make anyone's limbs go weak and hard at the same time.

Even Brittany got a goodbye kiss on the cheek from Joanne, after exchanging phone numbers. The Brit wished to meet them both when she would be back in New York after the three weeks long tour and she also did the obligatory "If you hurt her, I'll kick your butt"-speech, both to Santana and her newfound friend, Brittany.  
Santana wasn't exactly jealous at her friend, since she knew that Joanne would keep her hands away from Brittany. But Santana _was_ jealous. But more so because of the fact that Joanne could kiss Brittany without a care in the world who would catch them doing it. Even though it was just on the cheek.  
The Latina found that extremely unfair.

* * *

"These past days has been amazing. Like, really amazing." Brittany said shyly as they walked up the stairs to her apartment, holding Santana's hand in hers.

"Yeah." Santana smiled as she thought back at the memories she had made the past five days. She remembered the food war between Rachel and Joanne, the lazy kisses and snuggling with Brittany, Joanne trying to cop a feel with Quinn who then earning a slap from Rachel... just being around Brittany and all of their closest friends... but mostly being around Brittany... God... it had been some great days.

"I can't wait to do this again." Brittany said and pointed between the two of them with her free hand.

"Me neither." Santana squeezed Brittany's hand.

"Can you promise to not come over tomorrow? I would prefer to do it myself."

"But what if he hur..."

"Please. I'm doing this myself. But I'll promise to call you afterwards, okay?"

"Okay. But if you need me, you know where I'll be." Brittany nodded. She loved how kind Santana was to her. She didn't think that she actually deserved all her kindness. Everything Santana did made her heart flutter.

"I love you."

"I love you too." Santana said before leaning in for a kiss that spoke louder than words.  
It wasn't a goodbye kiss. It was a 'see you soon' kiss, one that reassured Brittany that Santana would be there for her the next day, and hopefully for a much longer period of time than that.

Santana was happy that she at least could kiss Brittany when no one was around, that, she was grateful for. But she couldn't help to think of a time where they didn't need to hide from everyone.

* * *

_To Artie: We need to talk. Can I come over?_

From Artie: Sure, come over! I'll get some food ready for you. (: x

She had promised Santana. But mostly she had promised herself.  
Breaking up with someone was something that was against her nature. She didn't want to hurt anyone.  
She always cared, she would always care. Because that's what she did. She cared about people. Even Artie.  
Artie hadn't always been faithful towards her, and since she met Santana, she hadn't either.  
But that was not it, it would be unfair to use something as Artie being unfaithful, as she had done the exact same thing.  
She had been selfish and a coward for the past couple of months. Hoping that Artie would say something, that he would realize that something wasn't right between them. She was hoping that he would initiate a breakup. But it never came.  
And now she had to do it herself. Because she didn't want to let Santana wait any longer. They loved each other.  
Her and Artie had been together, on and off, for almost three years. Even though they hadn't spent much time together lately, they used to hang out a lot.  
When their relationship had been 'off', Artie had always come back to her in the end, and she had always accepted it.

But it had to come to an end. She had to say 'no' for once. It was now or never.  
She didn't even dare to tell him that he didn't need to get her food. That would sound too suspicious, even though it probably would've been easier if she hinted on what was about to happen.  
If it was something that Artie always was good at when it came to her, it was taking care of her nutrition. He always bought her food, fruits, vegetables, nuts... you name it. He said that he didn't want his number one model girl to starve to death. But apparently Artie hadn't been listening too much that day when Brittany had told him that she had grown up in a household filled with healthfreaks, and she did have an athletic background. She wasn't as educated as a vegan or a nutritionist, but she definitely knew about vitamins and minerals and all that stuff that your body needed, so it wasn't like she needed Artie's food preparations.  
But she was happy that he had taken care of her, at least when it came to food and she was especially happy that Artie cared for her that way, because it was extremely important for her to not fall in the fashion industries gaps of encouraging models get skinnier.  
She was known for her athletic shape instead of the size zero, and she wanted to keep it that way. For the sake of her health and wellness, and for the sake of kids health. As a celebrity and role model, she didn't want to inspire anyone to harm themselves in any way.

* * *

She dialed Quinn's number and asked if she could come with her to Artie's apartment.  
Neither Santana or Brittany had told her what she was going to do.  
Her roommate was hesitating at first, not seeing the point in going there, plus, she was having a great time with Rachel. But when Brittany said that she was ready, Quinn immediately understood why she was needed.  
Quinn was told not to tell Santana that she would come with her, especially since she just the day before, had told Santana that she would do this alone. She wanted to do this without Santana, because this was her own fight.

Quinn agreed to come home as quick as possible and thirty minutes later she was by Brittany's side, hailing a cab.  
Brittany didn't really believe that Artie would potentially harm her, but having her best friend there was more for her own support if she would break down before even saying something. A push from her best friend would be enough to support her to go through with this.  
Because she wanted this. She had wanted this for months.  
She don't even remember the last time she actually felt love towards Artie, and she certainly didn't remember the last time she felt loved by Artie.  
Now when she had had a taste of what it felt like loving Santana, and feeling loved _by_ Santana, she wasn't even sure if it had ever been love when it came to Artie.  
The moment she laid her eyes on Santana, she knew that they had a stronger bond and that fate would make them meet each other again. Towards Santana, it was a stronger attraction and a stronger want and she had let the Latina wait for far too long.

* * *

After thirty minutes stuck in traffic, they were finally outside of Artie's apartment. The ultimate bachelor apartment.  
It was nice, but it was much smaller than hers and Quinn's, but he was living alone and didn't earn as much money since his brand was more on the minus side, rather than plus-minus or simply plus.  
In short, Artie was a big spender even though he didn't earn the money he spent.

It had been one awkward greeting. As Artie leaned in for a welcome kiss on the lips, Brittany had turned around so his lips barely brushed against the model's cheek.  
But Artie ignored it and showed both women to his living-room, where food and drinks for two was placed neatly on the coffee table.

"I didn't know that we would get company, _sweetie._" he said as he raised and eyebrow towards Quinn.

"Yeah, about that..." Brittany said nervously as she placed herself on the couch by the table. Quinn next to her and Artie on the other side.

The room was soon filled with an awkward silence, tension and unspoken words.

"I get why you are here. Both of you." Artie said before taking a swig of water.

"Y-you do?" Brittany stuttered out as she sat in front of Artie. She wasn't sure if that was much of a relief, or if she should be scared.

"Yeah, I'm not stupid." he said. He didn't imply that Brittany was stupid either, it was just a statement. "Don't you think I understood that you want this to be over? I can see it in the way you look at me." Artie continued. "Disgusted. I don't know..."

"Artie, please listen to me..."

"No. You listen to me first." He said demanding, without raising his voice. Brittany nodded to let him continue, she could listen, because she knew that she would go through with this in the end. She had to. For her own sake to be happy. "I read about you and Santana."

"Wh-what do you mean?" Brittany stuttered out. For a moment she thought that her heart had stopped and she was pretty sure that she stopped breathing. Artie knew about her and Santana already? But he wasn't supposed to know about that. At least not yet.

"It's ridiculous. Don't listen to them, the press doesn't know a shit, and you don't have to explain yourself. I don't think you'd ever do something like that to me." Artie said casually as he took a piece of salad to eat. Brittany was suddenly hyperaware of the loud thudding of her heart. Artie had read about her and Santana, but he didn't think it was true. But it was true. And she was starting to feel really bad about it. "Remember that time when someone started a rumor about _me_being gay? Ridiculous."

"Yeah, but..." Brittany began before getting interrupted.

"You can't leave me though. I know you can't." Quinn shook her head as the conversation turned back on topic again. Brittany listened to what Artie said. "You can't. You need me and I need you." Artie said with a hidden desperation, trying to reach for Brittany's hands without further luck to grab them.

Brittany knew that she didn't really need Artie. She was a strong woman and didn't need someone else to rely on. And _if_ she needed someone, it wasn't _him_. She knew that Artie always was like this. She hated it. The way he downgraded her, others, everyone. He always thought he knew what Brittany would do or say, sometimes he answered for her in interviews with something that she would never even consider. But she wasn't that transparent.  
Artie enjoyed to look down at people. He didn't have his height, but he had this way of speaking that could easily make everyone fall for his persuasion. But she wouldn't. Not again, ever.

She had stopped listening to Artie's 'begging' for her to stay with him thousands of words ago. It wasn't until she noticed him looking for something in his vest pocket that she actually tuned back in again. Artie was easy to see right through and his fumbling and the sweat forming on his forehead was a sign that this was the last resort kind of thing. According to him, this would be the safe card, the one thing that would convince her to not let him go.

"Arthur." Quinn said warningly as she saw what Artie had picked up.

"Please. Don't. You're making it worse..." Brittany begged the moment she saw the glistening diamond ring that he held between his fingers.

"I know you don't want to break me, so please, don't say no."

"You fucking bastard!" Quinn shouted and lunged forward over the table to punch Artie.

"No, Quinn!" Brittany quickly reacted and held Quinn back. As much as she didn't like what Artie tried to do, she didn't want her friend to hit him, or anyone for that matter.

"No, Britt. You've taken way to much bullshit from him in the past and I've just stood next to you and watched." Quinn spit as she struggled, trying to get away from Brittany's vice grip around her waist.

She kept struggling, but instead of trying to hit him, she reached for one of the glasses set on the table.  
She got a hold of one and emptied the water over Artie and the table.

"What the fuck!" Artie shouted in disbelief as he reached for a napkin to wipe his dripping face with. "Why are you even hanging out with people like her? She's... she's obviously violent and not a very _kind_person to be around." he continued.

"Really? _Really_?" Quinn replied harshly and balled her fists, ready to hit if she'd have to.

"Please, let him finish so I can get this over with." Brittany said nonchalantly. She was surprised at what Quinn had just done, but quite honestly, she was thankful for it. However, she didn't release her friend until she felt the woman slack in her grip.

"Can I continue now, or will you try something again?" Artie sneered at Quinn, water still dripping from his hair.

"Artie. Just... continue, please." Brittany said. She was starting to get tired of this game. She noticed Quinn tensing up next to her, but at least she didn't do anything.

"Britt. Look at me. I want you to look at me." Artie pleaded and Brittany did look up. Only to meet those eyes that once had made her, well, at least she used to feel _something_ even though it might not have been love. Artie's eyes looked different, not the bad different and not the good. Just, different. They had lost some of its color and they were somehow much more grey. And right now they were really dilated, too.

"Continue."

"Yeah, yeah." Artie mumbled in a daze. "Brittany...ehh... Sa... Se..." Artie paused and looked like as if in deep thought. "Brittany S. Pierce. Will you marry me?"

"Oh my God! You don't even know her middle name!" Quinn shouted as she looked in disbelief at Artie. She couldn't believe this man.

"I totally do! It's..." Artie tried to think of a name that could suit Brittany. "It's Sarah! Right? Sarah!" Artie exclaimed. He was almost ninety-nine percent sure that it was Sarah. Somewhere in his head he recognized the name... wait. No. No. "Wait. It's Sophie, right?" Yeah, now the names totally clicked.

"Yeah, it's Sophie." Quinn said and smiled sweetly at him.

"I knew it!" Artie said in victory and smiled brightly at his girlfriend, yet again he tried to reach for her hands without further success.

"No..." Brittany breathed out.

"No?" Artie said, confused.

"No." Quinn clarified.

"What do you mean?" Artie asked, clearly, he was still very confused.

"My middle name is Susan..." Brittany began.

"Susan." Quinn added.

"But..." Artie interrupted.

"Nuh-uh. Listen here." Brittany said and made a small gesture with her hand to show that she was talking right now. Kind of what he usually did to her. "I can't, and I don't _want_ to marry you. I can't be with you anymore." It was like ripping off a band-aid. It would hurt like hell at first, but soon it would just be distant and forgotten. This wasn't exactly something easy to forget though. But it was out there. Now Artie just had to understand her decision, but she knew it would be though for him to let it sink in. "It's over."

"But... please? Britty-boo? _Please_?" Artie pleaded. Tears began to pool, even though he tried to play it off cool.

"No... I... no." she too, felt tears pricking her sight as she thought of making someone cry. But she wasn't going to fall for his pleading, she wasn't going to cry either so she quickly wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Now was not the time.

"If not for me... then, for you? I can take good care of you and all, you know..."

"No." she said in a whisper.

"I can take you out for dinners weekly and go to the cinema. We could even run together. You know how much I hate running!" Artie said as if everything was okay.

"Fucking _no_!" Brittany shouted, she was about to completely lose it. _Why don't he understand..._

Artie was taken aback by the outburst, definitely not seeing that coming from his usually calm girlfriend. "It's over. Get it?" Okay. Ex-girlfriend.

"But I _love_ you..."

"_Really_? You don't show it." Brittany sneered.

"Don't leave me. Please? _I _need you._._"

For as long as she can remember, she have never heard him need anything from her, except for maybe a sandwich or a beer from the fridge and sex. Other than that, Artie has never asked for something from her. He don't need her. And she don't need him.

Maybe he was like she had been for the past couple of months, or year. Delusional.

"I think... I think that we've been in love with that... the picture, the perfect picture of us together as a couple, and not in love with each other as people." Brittany struggled with her words. They had been each other's safe nets since the start and she had held onto that net for way too long now.

For a long moment the room went silent again. None of them looked at each other.

"So this really is the end, huh?" Artie sniffled after a while.

"Yeah." Brittany said and immediately Artie's face contorted into a scowl, realization hit him. Because this _really_ was the end.

"Don't give me that look."

"You're right. I'm sorry." Artie relaxed his face and closed his eyes.

"Did Arthur Abrams apologize?" Quinn tried to joke.

"Quinn." Brittany said warningly.

"Sorry." Quinn mumbled and raised up from her seat and walked to the door and picked up their jackets from the coat hanger instead.

"I'm sure that you will find someone else, you know, someone who will truly love you." Brittany said and looked at Artie and his red eyes. "If you _actually_ love me, please, let me go."

Artie didn't meet her gaze. He just nodded and wiped his eyes.  
Deep down, he knew that she was right. He had to let her go. For both of them. He had only used Brittany, she was always there when she needed her, not because they loved each other, but because Brittany had felt like she couldn't say no.

"Britt, I think we should leave." Quinn said from the doorframe.

"Yeah. I'll talk to you some other day. Okay?"

"Sure. Yeah. That's okay." Artie said and nodded.

Brittany got up and walked over to pat his shoulder before whispering that everything would get better eventually.  
She walked towards Quinn who held the door open for her, before taking the final step out of the apartment she sent one last, sad, glance at Artie.

"Arthur. Call Sugar or _someone_. You look terrible." Quinn said before closing the door after her and Brittany.

* * *

**A/N: The fudge just went down?**

Here's a lil explanation:  
Now, there's a big chance that a lot of you are disappointed (though, I hope not!). After all, this is what all of you have been so patiently waiting for, so the pressure's been high.  
I know some of you wanted a really low blow... but instead you got a pretty "casual" breakup. This is however not the last time we'll see Artie (read: There might be a lil' more Artie bashing to come, from one Santana Lopez... maybe?).  
I mean, what idiot tries to propose when a breakup is coming. But he really expected Brittany to say yes, since she never says no to anything.  
I was actually considering Artie breaking up with Brittany instead, because as I mentioned, it would be "easier" on her. But I wasn't sure if that message would go through at all. But that's pretty much why the breakup has been on hold for so long. Brittany didn't want to harm anyone, even though it was Artie.  
And yes, that is kind of a ridiculous. But I'm pretty sure that there are people out there who actually think like that, and don't put their own feelings first.  
I don't encourage that.

The good thing about this. BRITTANY IS A FREE WOMAN! (but for how long...?) HALLELUJAH!

Now when that's in the past... what's next, you may ask.  
I can hint that next chapter will be from Santana's POV (mostly, or the whole thing). Mama Lopez might leave The Hamptons mansion to visit her daughter. And we might finally get our answers to what Santana and Quinn shook hands on all those months ago!  
Leave your comment on what you think will happen!


	17. Quinntana's Secret

**A/N:** Wanted to have this up before the Olympics opening ceremony... which starts in ten minutes... so I better hurry writing this authors note...  
And can I just say that we're on Q when it comes to the chapter titles! Thank God that I had a name that kind of suited...

Thanks to all of the reviews and alerts, here's some replies!

**vikstar80:** Totally missed your review on the last chapter! But I'm glad to hear that you like the new characters! (:  
And yay for rainbow flags and Naya dance!

**Guest:** Demanding is good!

**snixxjuice214:** Definitely not disaster in the making! Mama Lopez is one understanding ol' lady!

**dafuq33:** Honestly, I didn't even think of a slushie! Now I feel so stupid! Uhhh...

**pepper6:** That's very nice of you. And yes, I did expect bad reviews, but luckily, I didn't get any! Thank you. (:

**Ivy888:** Sending Santana your way! And rocky mountain oysters... yummy (made from JBI... eww... gross!)  
Quinntana deal coming... now!

* * *

**CHAPTER 17**

She wasn't exactly nervous. But she had never ever held a press conference before. She wasn't even sure if it was necessary to have one for this announcement. But as much as she had been told, a lot of people would be there and it wasn't like she could call it off now. Rachel and everyone else were already there, at the hotel.  
She knew that it would be great publicity, and not only for her.  
Reporters from television, magazines and newspaper, radio, photographers, business people and friends of hers who had no idea what she was going to announce would be there.  
For months it had been hers, Rachel, Quinn's and a few selected other's secret and since Joanne's visit, she had gotten on on the secret as well.

But not even Brittany knew.  
Amazing Brittany, whom she had decided to take everything slow with. It was mostly her own idea, but Brittany had agreed to it.  
It wasn't really like they were taking things slow anyway. For the past couple of weeks, since Brittany's and Artie's breakup, they had done most things together and Brittany had practically lived in her apartment, leaving them alone since Rachel took Brittany's place in the two blonde's apartment.  
But the decision to _try_ taking things slow, was because of the fact that right after Brittany's breakup, the blonde had called her and asked if she could come over for a visit. Since Brittany was always welcome, she stood outside Santana's door no less than thirty minutes later.  
What Santana was met with was something that made her heart tighten and anger boil.  
Brittany looked like she would break down any second. Santana took the blonde model inside to the couch where she whispered soothing words and held the woman tightly.  
Brittany soon opened up, in-between sobs, and told Santana the story of how the breakup went.  
Santana listened carefully. She felt her insides boil with more anger as Brittany told her about the proposal, how she lost it when Artie didn't listen, his hurt facial expression. All of that made the usually lively blonde sad, because she knew she had hurt him, if only a little.  
Santana's reaction to everything was that she really wanted to kick Artie in the nuts for doing all of this to Brittany, for making her cry. But she also knew that she wanted to be there for her girl and support her through this, because Brittany needed her as much as she needed the blonde.  
Santana knew that it had been a tough decision for Brittany to finally break up with him, but deep down, she couldn't be more happy about it, and Brittany reassured that it felt great to have gotten over with it, even though she felt really bad for Artie.  
Santana knew that Brittany wouldn't really be ready to start a new relationship so soon, she had to wait until everything emotionally had sunk in completely. As far as she knew, Brittany had been dating Artie on and off for years.  
It was safe to say that whether Brittany wanted him to be a part of her or not, or whether if she herself was aware of it or not, he still had a tiny place inside of her, that she had to let go of before engaging in a new relationship.  
Even though she herself had never been in a long relationship, she was very understanding.  
Santana would be there for Brittany when she was ready to take the next step and for the blonde to officially become her girlfriend.  
She had waited for so long already, and waiting for a little longer, that she could do.  
She was sure that she would be able to call Brittany her girlfriend one day.

She was sexually frustrated and it was kind of weird that she hadn't already jumped Brittany.  
To go be with someone else was really out of the equation already. She could never, wouldn't and didn't want to do that. She only needed Brittany.  
Santana believed that it would be worth it in the end. When the time would come, she was sure that it was going to be mind blowing.  
She liked thinking back, trying to remember what it felt like to touch Brittany _like that_. But thinking of their time together in Amsterdam didn't really help her sexual frustration.  
But Santana knew, that for the first time ever, sex wasn't everything.  
For the past two weeks they made each other laugh and feel safe. Every passing minute they got to know each other a little better and for every passing minute, Brittany forgot about how she had hurt Artie.  
They learned what they liked and what annoyed them. They noticed the small details about each other, like how Santana _always_ tapped her right foot when she was waiting for something, or how she rolled her eyes at everything Rachel said or when Brittany found something extremely funny and always snorted in between laughter, or when the blonde did small dance routines when she thought that no one was watching her.  
They were realizing and exploring what loving someone _actually_ meant.  
Because that's what they did. Loved each other.

After the weeks spent with Santana, Brittany could say that it was her first time loving someone. Her love for Artie had never been as strong as the bond she felt towards Santana, and compared to what she felt now, it could only be described as a small crush.  
Santana could say the same about her feelings for Brittany. She had never been in a relationship that had lasted for more than a couple of months, but never had she felt anything this intense back then, and they weren't even each other's girlfriends yet.  
It was definitely a new feeling for both of them. And they both loved it.

* * *

Today was, however, not about Brittany. Well, at least not all about Brittany.  
Today was about her and this announcement that they had blown up in bigger proportions than necessarily. It was crazy.  
As she arrived to the back of the hotel people even waited outside for her. For _her. _A _photographer._ She wasn't exactly Jennifer Lopez or Justin Bieber. But the recognition still felt pretty good as it boosted her confidence.

She signed a few autographs and thanked the people for coming. Then she walked inside where she, to her own surprise met...

"Madre?" Santana said and dropped her bag to the floor before rushing over to the older Latina for a hug.

"Ah! Santana! Let me down!" Maribel shouted in surprise as she felt her daughter's strong arms lift her up from the floor in a bone crushing hug.

"What... what are you doing here?" she said as she let her mother back down.

"I'm eating pineapples." she said and held up the skewer with pineapples on. "There's a lot of nice fruit back here." Maribel continued and pointed with her skewer towards the food table.

"You're here to eat fruit?"

"Of course not, hija!" Maribel said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I read about this press conference in a magazine, about one_ Santana Lopez _that would announce something big. The name oddly reminded me of my own daughter and I wondered what happened to my invitation."

"Oh. Sorry..." she wasn't sure how she possibly could've forgotten to invite her own mother.

"I called your assistant, Rachel is it?" Santana nodded. "Lovely girl. She helped me get my pass for this." the older Latina said and held up the guest card dangling around her neck.

"I'm glad that you're here."

"Of course! I wouldn't miss this for the world."

"And I'm really sorry that I didn't call you to invite you personally."

"Don't worry about it. I'm here now and I'm very curious as to what you're going to announce!"

Santana felt bad for not keeping her mother updated about her life. Brittany. This announcement... so many things were happening.  
They engaged in a short conversation until one of the organizers told her that she had to get ready and go out to meet the press in a couple of minutes.  
Mother and daughter said their goodbyes, but decided to meet afterwards for a cup of coffee.

* * *

"Here to announce news about her upcoming project. Santana Lopez!"

"Hi everyone. It's great seeing so many of you here." Santana began as she looked out over the sea of people and made her way to the table placed on the stage. She recognized some of her friends and some journalists. Her mother sat in the first row, next to Brittany and Artie sat a few chairs away. Rachel, Quinn, Sugar and Sam too. This made her lose focus, if only for a little while.

"Hi again, it's great seeing so many of you here!" Santana repeated, now with a microphone in front of her. "I will, uh, begin with my announcement and afterwards I will take a few questions."

"Hi, I'm Chris and I will be moderating the questions for Santana afterwards. Raise your hands and I might give you the word." an old man told the audience before taking a step back so Santana was alone on the stage.

"So... as I'm sure that all of you know, I am an award-winning fashion photographer who have made a name as one of the greatest photographer's in America the past years. And..." Santana took a deep breath. _What am I saying? This is ridiculous..._

"And last year the world got to enjoy a new television show about how this industry works. The _fashion_ industry. It was a huge hit and it was signed for another season." Santana's eyes roamed over the journalists who feverishly wrote in their notebooks to quote and remind themselves of particular words. "That's why I'm very happy to announce that I will be a part of the main cast for the second season of _Fashion Lies Everywhere_ with my friend and assistant, Rachel Berry as side-kick."

Her eyes landed on Brittany. The blonde was surprised, her eyes wide-eyed and her mouth agape. But she also seemed excited as she bounced up and down on her chair, clapping her hands like the rest of the room seemed to do, even though Brittany's hands seemed to clap in super speed.  
Her eyes then moved to her mother who sat right next to Brittany, who looked equally excited and surprised as Brittany.  
None of them looked mad at her for keeping this away from them, but she still felt bad for keeping this kind of information away from the people she loved. She had been told not to tell anyone, and she did keep it that way, until Joanne came for a visit.  
What kind of surprised her was that Rachel had succeeded to keep her mouth shut for so long. Santana could only assume that Quinn probably threatened her with something.

"I think it's really exciting to be able to share this part of me and my work with all of you. My wish would be to be able to inspire someone out there to maybe pick up a camera and see the world through a lens. I love capturing the beauty in the world, and not only people as I'm sure that many of you would believe. But moments, places... everything.  
To me, it will be really fun to be working close to the other members of the cast and crew, seeing as a few of them are some of my best friends.  
I also think that a lot of journalists write about me, maybe some of you here today have even written about me. I'm sure that some of it is true, but definitely not everything written about me is true, and this will be my chance to prove all of you wrong by giving you an insight to the life and mind of Santana Lopez. It's all thanks to you that I'm sitting here today. Thank you for giving me this opportunity." Santana said and smiled, before nodding towards the moderating organizer to take over.

"Thank you Santana. We will take questions now. Raise your hands." Chris said in his own microphone and walked up on the stage again.

* * *

She replied to as many questions as possible. She couldn't tell too much about what would happen in the upcoming season, since she herself wasn't even sure. But she could tell about her own expectations and thoughts.

"How did you get casted and for how long have you known?"

"One of my best friends from high school, Quinn Fabray, is working with the show as their production coordinator, and this season she's also the casting director. I know that she has put together a great gang this year. A couple of months ago she told me how both her and the director wanted me to be a part of the show. At first I wasn't sure how it would affect me and my personal life. But I decided that it would be a once in a lifetime experience to be on a hit television show. Besides. I couldn't say no since there's some great people working with the show." Santana said and smiled at Quinn, before glancing at Brittany who was looking at her.

"Man on the fifth row with the neon green shirt."

"Thanks. Hi Santana! Can you reveal if any of the season one cast will be returning?"

"Hello. I've been told that I _can_ reveal the names of the returning cast, but the new names are not for me to tell. I haven't met all of them, but I can assure you that the new cast that you will get acquainted with are great." Santana said and eyed the whole first row. "I myself will take over as the photographer in the cast, after Sarah, also known as the Blur, who leaves for other missions. But those who will return are Brittany, Sam, Artie and Sugar."

The people on the first row looked around themselves and realized that those people sat around them, little did they know that the whole first row, minus the older Latina, would be a part of the show.

"So Joe won't be returning?" someone shouted from the audience.

"No, unfortunately not as main cast. Something about his hair... I don't remember why." Santana shrugged. "I'm sure you will be seeing him as a guest in some episode though."

"Okay, lady with the fedora hat on the sixth row."

"Sataaaaaan!"

"Oh my..." Santana laughed as her eyes landed on the woman with the fedora. "Mercedes! Didn't see you there!"

"I can't believe that you and Rachel are going to be on my favorite television show! Damn girl, why didn't you tell me earlier?" Mercedes shouted.

"Sorry, I knew that you wouldn't be able to shut up about it. Besides, you're a journalist."

"Yeah, but not a gossip one!"

"True." Santana said and laughed.

"You're question, ma'm." Chris said, sounding a little annoyed.

"_Riiight_." Mercedes said and glared at the older man. "I don't need to ask something. But girl, you better give me an exclusive later." she said before smiling wide at the soon-to-be television star.

"Okay." Chris smiled at Mercedes before pointing at another journalist. "Redhead on the fifth row."

"Thank you, sir. Earlier, you mentioned that you wanted to prove everyone wrong, those who have judged you in beforehand. That's why I'm wondering what side of Santana Lopez we will get to see? Thank you."

"Honestly? You can definitely expect me to bring some bickering, most likely with my assistant. Heated arguments, drama and all that, that you guys are used to. Because that's a part of who I am. But I will also show other sides of me as well, one that not many people have seen before. A softer side and a non-business one. It will be more personal. Maybe I'll even bring on with some love." Santana said and smirked. Maybe it was the wrong choice of word, because as she said the last word it felt like the whole room stopped breathing. What exactly did Santana _Heartless_ Lopez just say? _Love? _Impossible."What?" Santana huffed in annoyance, as she looked out over the very astonished audience. She didn't get an answer. "Whatever." she mumbled as she reached for her glass to take a sip of water and just like that everything was back to normal.  
She heard Chris announce one final question before rounding everything up.  
The question she heard was not one that she had expected to hear today and she hoped that no one noticed that she spit the water back in her cup before coughing awkwardly.

"So what does this mean?"

"Well..." Santana cleared her throat. She knew the underlaying meaning of that question. What does this mean for _us._"I hope that you're ready to spend a lot more time with me." the Latina smiled as her eyes met Brittany's.

It seemed like most of the people inside of the big room thought it was just friendly. It was just how Santana was. She was flirting with every beautiful woman she laid her eyes on.  
But some of the journalists raised their brows at Brittany's bluntness and remembered the rumor floating around a couple of weeks ago. A few selected people knew exactly about the deeper meaning, but not really what it meant for Brittany and Santana.  
No one really knew. Not even them.

* * *

"Thank you for coming here today. Season two of 'Fashion Lies Everywhere' will start filming this summer." Santana said in her business voice.

"Thank you Santana, for being here today. Before letting all of you go, we would like you all to get the first glance on the full season two cast for 'Fashion Lies Everywhere'. Get up, all of you!" Chris shouted and waved towards the first row to get up next to Santana.

The photographers got ready and the journalists got ready with their cellphone cameras, because hell, they couldn't miss this exclusive first glance at the season two cast of one of the most popular television shows.

The season one cast were certainly surprised to see the strangers next to them raise from their chairs as well, knowing that all this must have been planned out from the beginning.  
Besides Santana, there were four other people to get introduced to the upcoming season.  
They all introduced each other in front of the press. One owned a model agency, one drag queen, another male model and one haute couture designer.  
Then there was Brittany, Sugar, Sam and Artie who also introduced each other, for those who had missed the last season or just weren't that interested in the fashion industry and knew about models or designers. Still, no one knew exactly what Sugar's role in the fashion business actually was.

Besides the five new faces for the main cast, Rachel, Quinn and Kurt would also be a part of the new cast as recurring guests. Last season both Kurt and Quinn had tried to keep themselves invisible for most parts, but for this season that would pretty much be impossible since they were all very good friend with both Santana, Brittany and Sam.

* * *

Afterwards, Santana greeted everyone properly. The cast, her friends, mother... even Artie got a handshake, though, she really wanted to shake him way more than that, or maybe even kick him. She told herself that she would have her ways with him later, without the prying eyes of the press on the other side of the wall.  
She wasn't sure if the director knew about Brittany and Artie's breakup already, but even if he did, she was pretty sure that Artie still would be there the next season for the sake of the drama that was bound to happen. Between her, Brittany and him, or just him and his stupidity.

Santana told Brittany that she could head to her and Rachel's apartment before her, and that she would come later. She had promised her mother coffee, and that much she owed her.

* * *

"I can't believe that you didn't tell me about this earlier! My daughter is going to be a television star!" Maribel said and hugged Santana.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. I feel really bad about it, for not telling you earlier."

"Don't worry about it, I understand." the shorter Latina said and looked up at her daughter. "However, you do have a lot of other things to explain, young lady." Maribel said, feigning an almost angry look.

"What do you mean?" Santana said nervously. She really had no idea what she had to explain. Had she done something stupid? She couldn't think of anything.

"We'll talk about that at the café. Come on now."

* * *

"Who was that blonde girl sitting next to me? She seemed very caught up in you... and I can say the same about you with her." Maribel said with the famous Lopez smirk showing as she took a seat at the quiet café.

"Uhm... that must be Brittany." Santana said nervously. She wasn't sure why she was nervous. Her mother knew about her sexuality. But this was _Brittany_. Brittany was the exception that was against everything she once had believed in.

"And who is this Brittany to you?" the older Latina asked curiously.

"My... she's my girlfriend... or... close friend... or... I don't know. It's so damn complicated." Santana blurted out. She began telling her mother about the whole Brittany and Artie ordeal that had been going on, even though it was over now. Her mother was a good listener and looked at her daughter intensely as she spoke about this girl that she seemed to like_ a lot_.

"Is my daughter finally settling for someone?" Maribel asked in surprise as Santana finished telling her about how much she loved this girl from the Netherlands.

"No, mamá. I'm not _settling_. I really think she's _it_."

"My daughter believes in _its_? What has happened since the last time I saw you! You're so _mature_ all of a sudden. Guess you're finally growing up." the older Lopez said, still sounding surprised.

"What? Why is that such a big surprise?" Santana said and crossed her arms.

"It is a surprise, but a welcomed one. You know, hija, as a mother, it is not pleasant to read about how your daughter is meeting new girls every other day. And not in a "meet girl for a cup of coffee"-kind of way." Maribel said and to point it out, she took a big gulp of coffee.

"Are you saying that you're against me meeting girls?" Santana pointed out.

"That wasn't very mature." Maribel said and laughed. "You know that I accepted you as you were the moment you told me that you only wanted to be with girls."

"I'm sorry mamá." Santana said and looked down on her celebratory cookie. "And I know. I will always be grateful for that. You're the best." she said and smiled at her mum.

"Oh, now you're just saying that!"

"No. I mean it. And I guess that I do kind of understand what you mean with me becoming more mature."

"I'm glad that you can see what I can see, Santana."

"Can I tell you a secret?" the younger Latina said and looked expectantly at her mother.

"Of course. You can tell me anything. I won't tell anyone." the older Lopez said and pretended to zip her mouth closed to indicate that her lips were sealed.

"You're such a dork!" Santana smiled at her mother's behavior.

"Yes. I'm a proud dork."

"Oh my God..." now Santana full out laughed.

"Calm down hija. You're making a fool of yourself."

"Says the dork!"

"Whatever." Maribel huffed. Yes. That's were Santana got her huffing from.

* * *

"So, what was that secret you wanted to tell me?" Maribel asked curiously as they walked to her car. Santana stopped them both abruptly by grabbing her mum's arm.

"Uhm... mami? I don't think I only want to be with girls." Santana said seriously and averted her eyes down at the ground.

"What do you mean? Why did you tell me that all those years ago? Why would you do that? Your father was so upset! You know that he still is! I don't understand this, hija. Are you saying that you're seeing a boy? I thought you said you loved Brit..." Maribel rambled on until she heard Santana hush at her.

That's when Maribel met Santana's teary eyes.

"I only want to be with her, mamá. She's the only girl for me." Santana said and sniffled before wiping her eyes with her hand.

"That is the most... I don't even know, Santana." Maribel smiled and walked over to hold her crying daughter.

"I'm not sure if she knows just how much I love her. It's so scary." Santana cried into her mother's shoulder.

"I'm so proud of you, Santana. I've always been and will always be proud of you."

"I love you, mami." Santana said and wiped her eyes before placing a kiss on her mother's cheek.

"Come on now, sweetie. I'll get you home to your girl. Then I'll go back home to mine so you two can come visit us soon!" the older Lopez said and dragged her daughter with her to the car waiting in the parking lot.

* * *

Her mother's conversation about maturing was nagging her mind ever since she first mentioned it earlier that day.  
Until today, Santana had thought that she had always been mature. But she understood what her mother meant. She knew that she was getting older.

Thinking of her age made her wonder why on Earth Brittany would want to be with such an old rag like herself. It didn't make sense to her. Brittany was young a lively.  
Herself? Santana Lopez was starting to get old and boring. She was losing her touch.  
She was soon going to want to do sudoku's and crosswords every evening instead of sexy times... okay, so that would probably never happen. But what if she'd want to settle in a few years?

Some people would probably say that she was _only_ 26 and a half. But Brittany was _only_ 22.  
Some people would also say that four years is nothing. Even though she knew that she herself would give up everything to be with Brittany.  
But Brittany is so early in her career. Her life pretty much just began. Santana couldn't expect the blonde to just give up her job to do the same for her, not even in a few years.  
Right now it was so early in their relationship, they aren't even official girlfriends and have never been on a date, but Santana was sure that she wanted to start a family with Brittany one day.  
That's why Brittany was the exception.  
She had never ever seen herself as a kids person, she never wanted to have kids. That was until she met Brittany.  
Being with Brittany, seeing the blonde talking to kids and how she acts around them... she just couldn't stop imagining what it'd be like to have little Brittany's to take care of. _Together_ with Brittany.  
Brittany _really_ was the exception. The person who made her want to be with one person only, to get _married_, the person who made her want kids, a big nice house somewhere where you could let out your children, and yourself, without having to worry about them getting hit by cabs or being fumed to death by the traffic...  
She wanted all of that with Brittany. Now was way too early, but she knew that she'd want it in the future.

Brittany was the one who made her feel vulnerable and unsure of herself. She was usually confident, but around Brittany she just wasn't sure how to show her feelings, because she had never felt the need to show her feelings to someone before she met Brittany.  
She knew that she had done a lot of stupid and mean things in the past, and she didn't want to ruin this.  
Brittany made her want to become a better person, not only for the sake of the blonde, but for herself too.  
That's why she had to start showing Brittany just how much she loved her. She had to start showing and telling her feelings to the blonde.  
And she had to ask Brittany something...

* * *

**A/N: **Did you guys see that coming? Santana becoming a TV STAAAAAR! With Rachel! (lord, that diva is going to go all crazy...)

QUESTION: Do you guys think it seems like Brittany really loves Santana? I don't want it to seem like she doesn't. But I think, after this chapter, it's more obvious that Santana loves Brittany a lot.

I'm actually not sure that I got the ages right here at the end. Continuity...  
I guess that it's not super important. But saying that Santana feels like an old rag, I don't want you to picture her as if she's 50 and Brittany 20. But in the first chapter I pointed out that Santana was 25. Then I mentioned that Brittany was four years younger than Santana in chapter 8.  
What makes my head dizzy is how much time that have passed from the first chapter until now. I should've written down every time jump and every month passing... but I suck... so I haven't! Woo!  
So yeah, Santana could as well be 27 already and Brittany could be 23. But my point is... don't imagine Santana as if she's 50 when you're reading!


	18. Radar

**A/N:** Here's a really short one... might be considered a filler?  
A little teasing...  
I tried to make it kind of funny, but I don't know how it turned out...  
The chapter title comes from Britney's "Radar". It really don't have anything to do with the chapter, except for Britney and the fact that we're on R and that I didn't have any good ideas for the title.

I didn't mean to scare you guys with the question after the last chapter!  
It was just that I once got this comment, about how, most of the times in Brittana fanfics, it seem like it's Santana who's head over heels in love with Brittany (even though we know that both of em' are crazy in love with each other!). And I pretty much wrote a whole chapter about how much Santana wants to spend the rest of her life with Brittany.  
So yeah... just checking what it seems like from your perspective!

**snixxjuice214 and dolfenluvr**: Drama, drama, drama! (; But not now!

**Meech0831**: Some fluff is coming! I know you want that! hehe...

**M206**: As I mentioned above, don't worry! (:

**Ivy888**: Oh, I'd say that what really made her want to work with reality TV was Brittzzz! Who wouldn't want to work with her!  
And yes, about the love thing! You always get what I mean (are we sharing a brain?!).  
Seems like I need to find myself a Latina... *sigh* haha! Loved your long post!

**Britt-Britt's**: Yeah, insecure Santana is pretty funny! And jealousy is kind of funny too...

**Guest:**I hate him too! Haha, sorry for brining up the Bartie monster!

**vikstar80:** More sappy Santana might be coming soon! Agree on the Brittana television show!  
And hey, I'm distracted by the Olympics too!

Thanks y'all!

Prepare yourself for the next two or three chapters to be...  
IT'S SO FLUFFY I'M GONNA DIIIIIE!

* * *

**CHAPTER 18**

It's been a month since Santana announced that she would be starring in Fashion Lies Everywhere and Brittany felt really giddy about the fact that she would work with some of her favorite people ever... and Santana. The best of the best.  
It was such an unexpected announcement and she would always wonder how everyone succeeded with keeping quiet about it. Especially Rachel, whom she had learned was really bad at keeping quiet (especially that one time when the short brunette told her and Santana how often her and Quinn did the deed. Yeah, too much information. Something that Quinn and Rachel seemed to have in common...)  
She herself had told Santana about being cast for season two the moment Quinn proposed the idea to her and she signed the papers immediately.  
However, she couldn't help to become a little worried about Artie. She hadn't heard from him since the press conference and that, she was happy about. But she didn't know how he would react _when_ her and Santana would become official and _what_ would happen on set..  
The good thing about their television show was that they didn't spend much time on an actual set, but usually a lot of time out in their usual work environments.

Ever since her and Artie's breakup she had felt happier. But she knew that it wasn't only because of their breakup.  
She kept staying at Santana's place, and Rachel kept staying at hers. Keys had been handed out to all four of them so that they could come and go whenever they pleased.  
Right now it was a matter of _when_ they would become an official couple and _who_ would be the one to ask who.  
It was becoming a habit, after a day of work Brittany came home to Santana's and was met with kisses and dinner ready. And sometimes vice versa when Santana was working late, not that the blonde was actually allowed to be in the kitchen. Especially not after a little incident which resulted in a blood dripping finger, two unicorn bandaids and a Santana who banned Brittany for ever touching the knifes, the stove or anything that could harm someone.  
Yes, even the spatula. You can totally hit someone with that...  
The cut hadn't been that bad, really. But Santana wanted to be sure that nothing would happen to Brittany, especially when she wasn't home to kiss it better for the blonde.  
At least Brittany could order takeout. Sometimes she used the microwave without Santana knowing.

There was something that Brittany really loved about coming _home_ to Santana's place. She herself felt at home at Santana's.  
She loved the warmth and smell intoxicating her senses as she took the first step inside of the duplex. It was just _so_ Santana, with a hint of Rachel.  
But of course, what really made her love coming to Santana's, was the woman living there.

* * *

"Hey, Brittz?" Santana said as she laid on her couch, cuddling with Brittany.

"Yeah?" the blonde said as she stroked Santana's hair.

"I was thinking..." Santana said hesitantly.

"Yes?" Brittany stopped moving her hand as she waited for Santana to continue.

"You know how we have never been out on a real date?"

"Yeah?" Brittany said as a wide grin was spreading over her face.

"So, you know. I was wondering if maybe... maybe we could go out someday?"

"Just go out? But we do that all the time." Brittany said and put on a pout, that might have been a fake one. But she wanted Santana to ask her out properly. On an _actual_ date. Using the word _date_.

"I mean, just the two of us. Without Rachel, Quinn and Kurt."

"Why? Don't you like to hang around them?" Brittany said and bit her lip to hold back a smirk.

"Yeah, but don't you think it'd be fun to just go out, the two of us?" Santana said and turned around to look at the blonde who quickly turned her face into one showing no expression in particular.

"Well, I guess that I'm not completely opposed to the idea..." Brittany said and shrugged, at least she tried to shrug with the Latina laying on top of her.

"So?"

"What?" Brittany said and raised her hand up so she could look at her nails to pretend that she wasn't that interested. In reality, her insides were exploding in excitement as she would actually get to go on a date with Santana.

"What... are you _serious_?" Santana tried to keep her tough facade up for Brittany, even though she was really sad that the blonde didn't seem to want to go out with her.

"I don't..."

"Whatever. Forget about it." Santana said and tried to get up from Brittany's body.

"Baby, where are you going?" Brittany whispered as she wrapped her arms around the smaller woman's body, to pull her back down until she was laying on her back over Brittany's body again.

"Let me go, Britt. I'm tired." Santana mumbled as she struggled to get up.

"But you can sleep on me?" the blonde pouted.

"No. Please, just let me go."

"I'll never let you go." Brittany said as she squeezed Santana tighter before inhaling the sweet smell of the woman that she loved. The Latina stopped struggling as she heard Brittany say those words. She would never let Santana go. Those words meant so much more than just letting go of her in that moment.

"I don't want to go." Santana mumbled as she let the feeling of being this close to Brittany take over.

"Will you go on a date with me?" Brittany whispered in Santana's ear.

"I asked you that." Santana raised an eyebrow and struggled before she rolled over completely so she was facing Brittany, their legs tangled in a complete mess.

"No, you didn't ask me out on a _date_. You wanted to know if we could go out. I'm not sure if I know what that would include." Brittany said innocently.

"I wanted to take you out! On a _date_!" Santana shouted as she looked at Brittany who was laying underneath her.

"Really? Are you guys fighting over who's taking out who on a date?" Quinn said as she walked past Santana's living room.

"Who the hell let you inside?" Santana shouted at her bypassing friend.

"I got a key, _remember_? Rachel sent me over to pick up some clothes."

"Why did we give her a key..." Santana mumbled.

"Same reason that you got a key and toothbrush at my place. Be nice Santana." Brittany said and kissed Santana's forehead.

"Uh-huh..." Santana smiled goofily and stared into Brittany's blue eyes, cupping the blonde's cheek before leaning down for a kiss on the lips.

"You are soooo whipped!" Quinn sang as she walked back with a bag filled with more of Rachel's clothes and other necessities.

"Says the woman who pick up clothes like a little maid! Get out!" Santana growled from her spot on the couch.

"I'm on it! See you later lovebirds!" Quinn shouted before closing the door after her.

"So... where were we?" Brittany asked and wiggled her eyebrows.

"Stop that!" Santana said and giggled at how cute Brittany looked when she did that. "And, we were talking about whether or not you will go on a date with me."

"No. If _you_will go on a date with me."

"But Britt, I really want to be the one to take _you_out." Santana whined.

"I really want to be the one to take _you_out."

"You won't budge, will you?"

"No. You won't either?"

"No." Santana huffed and crossed her arms as she sat up.

"But what about splitting up a day? You can come up with some activities and I come up with something?" Brittany said after a moment of silence.

"Fine. But I take dibs on the evening half!" Santana said and giggled at Brittany's dumbstruck face.

"But I wanted the evening..." Brittany licked her lips and smirked.

"Keep it in your panties, Britt." Santana said warningly before capturing Brittany's lips between hers again.

"Wait." Brittany detached their lips. "So is that a yes? Will you go out on a date with me?"

"Yes... but only if you will go out on a date with me?" Santana pulled off the famous Lopez smirk.

"This is going to be the ultimate date day ever." Brittany nodded rapidly before pulling Santana down, closer, for an obligatory _'I'm going on a date'_-snuggle.

* * *

"Hey! I got a gift for you!" Brittany said as she saw Santana coming back from the kitchen.

"Yeah?" Santana smiled as she saw Brittany, who had borrowed some of her clothes. A black skirt and a see-through tank top.

"Here." the blonde smiled as she held out a little note with a word scribbled.

"What is this?" Santana said and raised an eyebrow as she sat next to Brittany. "I don't love unicorns?"

"What? I thought you loved me!" Brittany feigned hurt and pouted.

"What! I'm sorry. I was just kidding!" Santana said quickly and pecked Brittany's cheek. _Whipped._

"That's my girl!" the blonde smiled and kissed Santana back.

"But really. What is this?" the photographer said as she waved with the small sticky note.

"It's a password."

"A password for what?" She wasn't sure that she was going to like what was coming...

"I got us twitters!" Brittany shouted and pulled out hers and Santana's phone from behind her. "Look! I already tweeted from your account!" the blonde said proudly as she showed Santana her phone.

_ BrittSPierce Hi Britt-Britt! What's up? (-:_

"I'm sitting right next to you?" Santana looked at Brittany. She didn't understand why she'd need to have a Twitter. She didn't need the whole world to know what she was doing all the time.

"Yeah, I know. But I still thought it would be fun and... you don't like it?" Brittany pouted again, this time it wasn't a fake one.

"No, well, I've never been one for social networks. It was Facebook that ruined mine and Quinn's friendship. But this is very cute of you, Britt-Britt." Santana smiled as she looked down at the tweet that she supposedly sent to Brittany.

"I'm sorry. I should've asked you first." Brittany said sadly, regretting starting the account for Santana. She just thought it'd be a fun idea to be able to show their friendship, and one day, relationship, for the rest of the world online.

"No, don't be sorry. I'll definitely use it, and I like the idea of being able to write to you like that. Even though we see each other all the time."

"Yeah? I like that idea too. I know that I can text to you, but how cool wouldn't it be to tweet me from the bathroom?"

"You're such a dork!" Santana laughed and cuddled close to Brittany.

"I know. And you love it!" Brittany giggled.

"I do."

* * *

"Oh My God!"

"What? What is it? Are you okay?" Brittany shouted as she hurried into Santana's kitchen as she heard Santana shout.

"No! Britney Spears is following me on twitter!"

"That's it?" Brittany said and looked at Santana. She really thought that the Latina was hurting after hearing her shout.

"What are you talking about? My favorite childhood singer is following me on twitter!"

"Oh, I thought you were talking about me..."

"But you're already following me! Along with thousands of others!" Santana said happily as she did a little victory dance. If her followers knew that Santana Lopez was a real goofball behind the bitchy facade and sarcastic remarks, she was sure that no one would actually follow her on twitter.

"What have I done! I've created a twitter monster! I wonder if there's something called Anonymous Twitters, for those who got an unhealthy relationship to Twitter. You're so obsessed! I shouldn't have gotten you that Twitter account! I'm starting to think you love Twitter more than me!" Brittany said dramatically.

"You just said 'Twitter' like, five times in the span of five seconds. Unhealthy!" Santana said and stuck her tongue out. "And it's impossible to love something more than I love you!"

"Sap! Watch your tongue or else some bird might come and poop on it!" Brittany teased.

"Gross! Besides, we're inside."

"Smartass."

"I know that you love my ass."

"No."

"Liar, liar pants on fire!"

"What? My pants are on fire?" Brittany shrieked, running over to the sink, Santana close behind.

"What? You don't... Ouch!" Santana touched her nose that Brittany had just booped. The blonde just laughed at the brunette's facial expression. "Why did you do that?" the Latina said sounding miserable as she kept rubbing her nose.

"Aw, did I hurt my little baby girl?" Brittany said in a voice like a mother would use when talking to their newborn child.

"Yes." Santana pouted.

"Well, let me kiss it better then?"

"Yes, please." Santana's eyes lit up as Brittany pecked her nose.

"Wait..."

"What?" Santana nearly shouted as she was going in for the blonde's lips.

"Should I be worried?" Brittany asked as she eyed Santana suspiciously.

"About what?"

"Britney."

"What?" Santana raised an eyebrow, not understanding a thing. Why would Brittany be worried about herself?

"And they call me the blonde one..." Brittany mumbled. "Should I be worried about you and Britney Spears, the _singer_? Something won't be happening between you two?"

"Oh My God, Brittz." Santana burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. "Honestly, I don't even find her attractive."

"But we kind of look alike..." the blonde pouted. "Don't you think I'm attractive?"

"I've told you, you're the most beautiful person that I've ever met. And I have met a lot of beautiful people." Santana reassured. "Take my word, miss Pierce."

"I guess I'll have to take it then." Brittany smiled and slapped Santana playfully on the butt.

"Besides, you're the only Brittany S. Pierce for me. Unless I want to belt out to some '_Toxic'_, of course... or some _Hit Me Baby One More Time..._" she winked, thinking of the little slap she just got by Brittany.

"Please..." the blonde said as she looked at Santana that way that made the brunette's heart beat out of the chest.

"What?"

"Kiss me..." Brittany pleaded.

Santana didn't need to be told twice before their lips locked.

* * *

Brittany and Santana were both busy planning their different date ideas in-between working.  
Both of them had so many ideas that they weren't sure if it would fit on the few hours they had gotten each. But hopefully, there would be more date opportunities in the future and with a little help from their friends, their date day would be the most epic date day the world had ever seen.

"Two. Yes. Yes. No, not allergic. What? Really? Yeah? That's awesome! Thank you so much. Yes. I'll see you next week. Can you bring her too? Oh my God, you're the best. Tell her I said 'hello' and that I look forward to meet my second favorite girl! You're right, you probably shouldn't tell her that I said second. Yes. Bye!" Brittany said happily and smiled into the receiver.

"Who was that?" Santana said as she walked into the living room.

"Uh, oh. It was no one."

"Didn't sound like no one." the Latina huffed. She assumed, and hoped, that she came on Brittany's first place when it comes to favorite girls. But who was this mysterious girl that comes on second place. "Did it have something to do with our date next week?" she said curiously as she looked at how the blonde would react, remembering how the rest of the conversation went.

"No."

"Oh, it so was!" Santana shouted and pointed at Brittany who sat on the couch.

"No."

"Don't lie."

"Fine. But you won't get anymore hints. We promised that we wouldn't tell each other where we are going or what we're going to do."

"Fine." Santana huffed before smiling smugly. She was going on a daaaaate...

* * *

"Please Mike! I beg you! I'm on my knees right now!" Santana said as she paced in her bedroom. "Fine, I'll send a picture later. Yes. On me knees. Begging. With a sign saying that Mike and Tina are the best. God. Are you two like three?" the Latina rolled her eyes at her demanding and childish friends. "Thank you. I owe you two. And yes. Rome, Bologna, Venice, Verona, Florence, Naples. Whatever. Just make it Italy. Yes, leave all that there afterwards. I'll put the key at the usual spot. Yes, I really like her. Believe it or not, _I, Santana Lopez,_ actually likes someone. Crazy!" she said dramatically. "Yeah, I'll introduce you someday. Maybe you can come over for dinner? No! Not then, idiot! Okay, sorry. I take that back. Thank you guys, you're the best. Even though you make me do ridiculous things. Bye."

* * *

**A/N: Date ideas? (don't mention something that's going to be way better than my ideas now...)**  
**What do you think will happen?!**  
**Next chapter might take a while since it's a long one! (or I'll split it, we'll see...)**  
**I'm really into the Olympics as well, so that's definitely distracting too. Only three medals for us so far though... I got a new crush in a supercute athlete. Uh-huh...**  
**Until next time! Y'all are da boooomb!**


	19. Secret Destination

A/N: The monstrous chapter! So this is a mixture of sweetness, some awkwardness and maaaaybe some smut? Only time will tell.  
I can spoil y'all that there will be some cliches... and everything fluffy in this miserable, stinking world!  
Ready for some sweet lady kisses? There will be a lot of em'!  
And as always, I jump to different places when I write, so if there's something that's obviously missing, let me know!

**snixxjuice214:** It was cute, wasn't it!

**Guest:** Thanks! My country wasn't kicking major ass, unfortunately... but a few medals at least! (:

**Dolfenluvr:** Mike, Tina and Santana being ssssneaky!

**vikstar80:** Aw, lil' puddle! Maybe Artie's up to something...  
Ohhh, curios now, are we?! It's actually two peeps! Katie Taylor (duhhh, how badass is she?! I'd hit that, if you know what I'm saying... boxer... tsssk...) and then there's another one... but I can't just tell y'all everything!

**redsoxlover34:** Ahh, you read it all in one day!? That's crazy! More Mercedes and Kurt? I'll take that into consideration! (:

* * *

**CHAPTER 19**

They wanted to do this properly.  
That's why Brittany had stayed at her place for the night, so that she could come and pick up Santana in the morning for their first date together.  
The blonde was sure that the first stop of the day was something that the Latina wouldn't be too keen on doing since it meant that she had to wake up super early in the morning. But really, Santana had no choice than to do whatever Brittany told her to, after all, Santana had decided to take the afternoon.  
Besides, today would be their day.

She had been awake for an hour already, preparing the first stop on this fantastic day that she would be able to call her first date with Santana. A day she hoped to remember for years to come, and forever.

Barely any people where out at this time of the day, and that she was grateful for.  
What she was doing wasn't exactly legal and she hoped that no one would catch her in action... that surely would be something to gossip about...

* * *

"Hi baby. How are you?" Brittany said happily as she heard that someone answered the phone.

"Mhm, Britt." Santana smiled and cuddled with her pillow before checking the time on her phone. "It's 6.30 in the morning. What do you think?" she whined as she realized how early in the morning it was. "Too early."

"Oh, someone's grumpy today." Brittany teased. She had been awake since 5. Not that she had to rub that in Santana's face. "Anyway, just wanted to tell you to get up because our date is officially starting in thirty minutes!" the blonde said happily.

"You got to be kidding?" Santana whined as she tossed and turned in her bed.

"Nope! Hurry up! I'll be over soon." the blonde looked at herself in the mirror before smirking. "And oh, get dressed in workout clothes. Jogging shoes on! See you soon, baby."

"Joggi..."

*beep beep beep*

Santana couldn't question the choice of clothes before the line went dead, indicating that Brittany had ended the call.  
Even though she was dead tired after a night consisting of doing the final planning with Mike and Tina, making sure that everything would be perfect, she still felt really excited. And nervous.  
She was sure that her friends would do their part of the deal, but that wasn't what made her nervous.  
Brittany made her nervous.  
What if Brittany wouldn't like what she had planned for them.  
She wasn't that good at dating. She had gone out on a lot of dates during her high school years, a few when she moved to New York... but lately? Not a single one.  
Besides, the importance of those dates had been, well, they were of no importance at all. She just did it to get out there. She didn't even know what she was thinking back then. But this, this had to be special, and that made her nervous.

She threw herself out of bed and started to get ready.  
Jogging shoes. On!

* * *

"Don't you just love this?" Brittany said after a few minutes, the morning air filling their lungs as they jogged through Central Park.

"Yeah, it's pretty refreshing." Santana smiled as she ran next to the blonde, trying to keep up. Though, she didn't mind running after Brittany since it gave her a nice view of Brittany's backside, however she still wanted to show that she wasn't all lazy and actually did work out.  
Honestly, she was in a very good shape.

The blonde was only wearing a black sports bra with a purple hoodie over that, yoga pants and a colorful pair of Nike's on her feet. She found it hilarious that the model wore a pink fanny pack too, because who wear those nowadays.

Whenever the Latina would fall behind, she could't help but linger a little longer at Brittany's bum. Because damn, those pants were really form fitted. Her mind wandered more when she didn't notice any lines, indicating that Brittany wore some barely there underwear.

Maybe Santana didn't give Brittany an equally nice view of her backside or her front. She hid her toned stomach in her grey v-neck and black shorts, camera bag hanging on her side, since she almost always brought it.

Brittany still found Santana extremely attractive as she was wiping her sweat from her forehead.

"We're taking a cab from over there." Brittany said and pointed towards the corner of the park. "Race you there!" the blonde shouted and took off before Santana could even react.

Brittany slowed down and turned around to see how far behind Santana was when she felt the wind swoosh next to her and a small Latina running past her.

"Oh you!" Brittany shouted after Santana and sped up, only to come in second.

"That's what you get for cheating!" Santana said as she saw the pouting blonde come up behind her. The Latina was really competitive.

"Not cool!"

"Nope. You owe me though." Santana smirked. "A kiss."

"Fine." Brittany said and pretended to not be excited. However, she felt the need to tease a little and only leaned in for a quick peck on Santana's cheek.

"That wasn't a kiss." Now it was Santana's turn to pout. The Latina crossed her arms in displeasure.

"Sure was!" Brittany said happily and walked away to hail a cab.

* * *

"More running?" Santana sighed as she saw that they were heading for the Brooklyn Bridge.

"Yep. Already tired?" the blonde teased.

"No." the Latina said quickly. "I was just wondering." she continued and stared out of the window.

"Bad morning?" Brittany asked as she reached for Santana's hand.

"No, but that wasn't a kiss, Brittany!" Santana hissed.

"You're still not over that?" Brittany laughed at the cute brunette she had sitting next to her.

"No."

"I promise you that there will be more kissing later."

Another peck, on the lips this time.

* * *

They had ran more than half of the bridge, going back to Manhattan, when Brittany said that she had to take a break. That's when something caught Santana's eye.

She took a few more steps in the direction of Manhattan...

"What the... what..." Santana looked between the pavement and blue eyes shimmering with mischief. "You did this?" the blonde nodded in excitement. "Brittany..." she pouted. She didn't know what to do. She was just so happy to have Brittany in her life.

"I know that it'll probably be gone by tonight, but you could always take a photo of it. I want this to be one of our spots." the blonde smiled as she looked straight at Santana.

"I love you. So much it's crazy. You make me crazy." Santana said as her eyes went down to the pavement in front of them again, a wide grin spreading before she leapt forward and engulfed Brittany in a tight hug, prepping the blonde with small kisses all over her face.

To anyone walking on the bridge, this spot would look like a really bad piece of graffiti, maybe they wouldn't even notice, maybe those who did notice would smile and wish that their partner had done it.

Someone had written something on the pavement with black spray paint.

_'S + B  
__I love you, Santana.  
__- Your B'_

Those were the words written inside of a big heart on the walkway on the Brooklyn Bridge.  
Those were the words written by one Brittany Pierce, directed to one Santana Lopez.

"You forgot something, B." Santana whispered. Smiling as tears of happiness started to fill her eyes.

Brittany looked down at her writing as she held Santana close. She was sure that she checked everything before leaving. She was sure that everything was correct.

"Forever, Britt." Santana finally let the tears roll down her cheeks as her eyes met those deep blue ones. "S plus B, _forever_."

"You're right. Forever, Santana." Brittany said as her eyes glimmered with tears. "I actually got us these..." the blonde said as she, to both of their dismay, let go of the brunette to unzip the fanny pack hanging on her hip.

One red and one white marker and a silver padlock.

"Love padlock." Brittany said.

"Love padlock?" Santana asked.

"Yeah, look around. There's a bunch of them around us." the blonde smiled as Santana looked around and saw the locks sitting on the rail of the bridge.

"I've never heard of them..." Santana mumbled.

"It represents forever lasting love. You can put a padlock here, and then throw away the key in the river."

"That's kind of cute." Santana smiled. If it would've been someone else who had told her about a love padlock, she would've snorted and burst out laughing, saying that it was ridiculous. But now when Brittany told her about it, it sounded so cheesy and cute, that she wanted to attach one of those damn locks together with the girl that she love, to represent their feelings.

"Want to put up one of those with me?" Brittany asked excitedly.

"Of course." Santana said, equally as excited.

"Want to do me the honor and paint the heart on it? I'll do the letters." the blonde held out the lock for Santana to take.

"I got another idea." the Latina smiled and grabbed the red pen and the padlock.

She began painting with the red pen. It was so small, but it looked decent.

Brittany handed over the white pen as Santana asked her and in no time the Latina handed over the padlock for Brittany to continue what she had started.

A half heart with the letter _B_ in white in it.

"You do your half." Santana pecked Brittany on the lips.

With steady hands, Brittany made her half of the heart in red and the letter _S_ in white, she added a _plus_ sign between the two letters.

"I want you to lock it." Brittany said.

"Okay, but you'll hold it while I lock it, okay? If I'm going to do something cheesy like this, I want us to do it together, completely together."

They decided to lock it next to Brittany's boardwalk message, and hopefully no one would clean the rails and throw all the padlocks away.

"So, how am I going to throw it?" Santana smiled brightly. Doing stuff like this with Brittany was doing her good things.

"As far as possible!" Brittany jumped up and down in excitement.

"Okay, okay." the Latina smiled at the blonde. "Ready?"

"Yes!"

Santana swung with her arm, almost spinning around, making herself look like an idiot in front of Brittany. She soon released the key to drop into the water beneath them.

"Forever." Brittany said before grabbing Santana's hand to bring her closer, staring out over the river together.

"Forever."

* * *

They took a few cheesy couple pictures together with the message and the love padlock.

Capturing memories and moment, creating something that would later represent more than that.

"Now, kiss me." Santana said as she sat crouched down on the bridge together with Brittany, their locked love padlock and their future ahead.

"Yes, ma'am."

A french kiss.

* * *

"No more running?" Santana asked as she and Brittany walked around happily, hand in hand, still on the Brooklyn Bridge towards Manhattan.

"No more running."

"So where are we going?" Santana tried, hoping to get an answer.

"You'll see."

XXXX

"I haven't been on a playground since forever!" Santana shouted as Brittany raced her to two swings in the corner of a massive playground, which was close to empty, a few couples and children where there too. It was surprising that not more people where out playing, the weather was nice, the sun shining. It was still early, but not that early.

"Oh, I thought you were one of those people who always hung out at the playground." Brittany winked and Santana just snorted at that.

"Come on, I'll push you." Brittany told Santana to sit down on one of the swings.

"What if I want to push you then?" Santana asked as she took a seat, waiting to feel Brittany's hands on her back.

"Nope." Brittany said and did the first push.

Brittany kept pushing Santana for a while. They spoke about everything and nothing. The silence didn't disturb them, because most of all they enjoyed each other's company.

After a while they headed for the playground's slide, it wasn't that high, but it looked high enough to attract the both women in their 20's.  
A few kids joined them, finding it extremely entertaining to see two grownups laughing like crazies after going down the slide several times, together, alone and with random kids in their laps.  
Santana and Brittany sneaked kisses in between the sliding, the kids hollered at them when they caught them, causing everyone to giggle.  
The kids were most likely wishing that their parents were more like the two women. Never had sliding been that fun.  
It wasn't until one of the girl's mother came, that the fun ended.

"Sarah, come here."

"But, mommy. I don't wanna..." the little redhead whined. The girl didn't look like she was more than four years old.

"Sarah." the older woman said sternly as she looked between Santana, Brittany and her daughter.

"Mom..."

"I said no. You can't... you can't play with... those... _dykes_..." the mother spit out.

"Calm down, lady." Santana said from the top of the slide, having heard the conversation. She was surely not going to take any bullshit from a stranger.

"You got no say in this. You're not... you're not going to influence my daughter into some nasty habits in the future."

"Those nasty habits, being what exactly?" Santana shot back.

"You and that blonde, doing things. Inappropriate things, among children." the woman said in disgust. "Don't you dare deny anything. I saw you two kissing!"

Santana was boiling with anger. The kids didn't mind her and Brittany kissing, because they didn't see anything wrong with it. It was their parents, or well, this parent, that didn't see what was laying behind the exterior. Love.  
She was about to slide down and confront the mother of Sarah when she felt a hand grab her's.

"Please, don't do anything you might regret. There are kids her. No violence okay." Brittany whispered as she locked eyes with Santana.

"Of course not." the Latina smiled before pecking those lips that she loved, but apparently, wasn't allowed to love according to this woman...  
She slid down the slide like a real lady, not even shouting this time. Soon enough she was standing tall in front of the homophobic woman, who was taller than her, but her stance was wavering the moment she met Santana's fierce stare.

"You saw us kissing?" Santana asked.

"Yes. I think every parent here can confirm that they saw you two kissing, and I will no longer accept that kind of behavior here, at least not when my child is here."

"You know what, that is ridiculous. You can't handle a little PDA? I'm going to assume that you're either A. straight as a ruler and just an ignorant piece of... yeah, or B. late in life gay, stuck in the closet. Either way, I'm sure that you and your hubby have done or seen some PDA in the past."

"But we're not _dykes, _like you two."

"I think you should leave." Brittany said from the top of the slide, her voice wavering slightly, the sign of hurt.

"You can _fuck _your muffdiving friend behind closed doors, but not here, among children!" the woman hissed between gritted teeth, still keeping eye contact with Santana..

"Claire, there are children here. Calm down, please." a middle aged man came up behind the woman, apparently called Claire. "Sarah, come here, sweetie." the man lifted up the little girl and walked away to sit on a bench a few feet away.

"I'd like to teach you something, _Claire_." Santana said. In her peripheral vision she could see Brittany slide down, and it all got confirmed the moment she felt a hand in hers.

"What's wrong with people nowadays." Santana said loudly as she stared at Claire. "Not accepting love for what it is." she raised her voice so that every parent and every child at the playground could hear her clearly. "Why can't people see love for what it is? Because that's what it is. _Love_. Love is love, no matter gender. I love this girl here and I won't accept anyone to degrade her or me for that. Love is so damn hard as it is already, why do you have to go and make it fucking more difficult than it already is? It's important to embrace everyone in today's society, because if not, who knows what would happen. If your kids would realize that they're in fact gay, lesbian, bi, or maybe even transsexual, would you disown them? Would you not love them anymore, because your child would love someone of the same gender as them? My father did that, and look where I am today." Santana shouted. "I'm exactly where I want to be, holding hands with the girl that I love. You can call me inappropriate words all you want, but don't you dare call my girl anything. I won't accept that, I won't." the Latina shook her head.

"I..."

"No, you listen to me carefully. I can show my love for this girl all I want. The same way you're allowed to show your love for your partner. I wouldn't intrude if you would decide to kiss him or her. Want to know why? What you do is not any of my business, unless you decide to talk shit about me or my Brittz. You won't even be able to count how many times people have come up to me and asked if they could join in if I kissed someone, do you know how that feels? Being asked if some random person could join you, just because it looked hot from the side?" Santana felt Brittany's grip tighten in her hand. _Ouch, how many girls had Santana kissed in public..._"If it wouldn't be because of the fact that we're among kids, and I'm being held back, I so would slay you. Physically or mentally, it would've been your choice. Apparently it's your lucky day." Santana shrugged. "I'd also like to add that today is our first real date, thank you very much for ruining it."

"I, I don't know what to say..."

"Please, don't say anything. I think you've said enough." Santana said sarcastically. "I'd, however, like to speak with your daughter."

"Of course, ma'am." the man who lifted Sarah away walked up to the three women.

"Thank you, sir." Santana said politely to the man. "Hi, you're Sarah, right?" Santana said as she crouched down to the girls level. Brittany joining her on the ground.

"Yes." the redhead said, almost scared to say anything else.

"I'm sorry for all the shouting. I just wanted to tell you something."

"Uh-huh..." the girl mumbled nervously.

"Thank you." Santana said simply. "You didn't judge me or Brittany when we all played together, because it didn't matter to you. What mattered was that we all had fun together, right?"

"Yes." Sarah said, now with more ease as she was calming down. She even nodded in response.

"Never change that, okay? Never judge someone you don't know. It's important to accept people even though they're not like you. Remember that. Okay?"

"Okay." the girl smiled for the first time since she went down the slide together with Santana.

Santana wasn't sure if Sarah really understood. But she knew not to underestimate the knowledge that kids had. If Sarah actually didn't understands, she was sure that she would one day, and that she would remember what she had just told the girl.

"So, can I get a hug?" Santana asked politely.

Sarah looked up at the man, who probably was her father, if it was okay to hug the brunette who was a stranger to her. The man nodded and told her to go on.

"Yes, you can get a hug." Sarah said before taking a step in Santana's direction before two long arms wrapped around the tiny body.

"Mommy, I think you should apologize." Sarah pouted.

"I..."

"Claire." the man said.

"I..." Claire took a deep breath. "I don't know what flew into me. What you said, I'm still taking it in, but it really left marks and made me re-think. I'm sorry, for what I said, and about your father. I shouldn't have judged you like that"

"Thank you, for apologizing. I know that it's hard." Santana said.

"I, well. I guess that you were kind of onto something. But I'm straight as a ruler..." Claire tried to ease up the atmosphere. "My mother however, was having an affair with a woman, causing my parents to divorce, I guess that's why I am like this today..."

"It's fine, you just need to accept it and embrace other people. It's not easy to just change your mind like that. But I'm glad that I made you realize that you might have been wrong... I wish more people were like you, welcoming change."

"Once again, I'm sorry."

That's when the people at the playground erupted in applause and chatter.

Some people recognized her and Brittany and wanted to take pictures together, but most people walked up to Santana to introduce themselves and their kids, thanking her for the speech and for the inspiration. Even a gay couple walked up to her with their three year old son, thanking her for what they had never dared to do, telling Santana and Brittany their story of how they usually pretended that they were brother's if people they didn't know would ask.  
It was sad, but that's reality.

* * *

"Baby, I'm so proud of you." Brittany said happily as they walked hand in hand, away from the playground. "For I while I thought you'd bring out those razorblades that you hide in your hair, but I'm glad that you didn't."

"Me too." Santana smiled. "I'm sorry though."

"For what?"

"For ruining our date. I mean, I shouldn't have shouted like that. We should've just left and let it be, but I couldn't let her speak like that to us, to you..."

"Santana, this is the best date that I have ever been on, and we aren't even done yet! I'm so happy that I got you in my life. And who would've known! Santana Lopez is a kids person!"

"Well, errr... no... but... ehh..." Santana stuttered.

"Yes! You would be an incredible mother, I'm sure!" Brittany said happily.

"Not as good as you though..." Santana mumbled.

"What did you say?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing." Santana smiled at her thought.

"You're incredible in every way, you're my knight in a shining armor." Brittany said as she moved closer to the Latina, making it almost impossible to walk.

"A knight you say?"

"Uh-huh..."

"So where is our next destination, my beautiful princess?" Santana said, making her voice sound deeper.

"Well, I think I saw a hot dog cart earlier... and I want ice cream too!"

"Hot dogs and ice cream it is!"

"Yes!" Brittany shouted, turning so that she was facing her knight.  
She kissed Santana again, this time with more passion. Showing how grateful she was, for having her knight there to protect her.

* * *

"You got some ketchup..." Santana reached for Brittany's bottom lip to wipe away the red stain with her thumb. "There."

The Latina didn't stop running her thumb across Brittany's lip. For a moment she stopped, that was when the blonde kissed her thumb...

* * *

After their stop at one of the local hot dog carts, Santana and Brittany headed back to Santana's to change clothes and freshen up after their jogging.

Now they had ended up outside an old building at the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

It looked like any other building. Walls and windows... a roof...

The difference between this and any other building was that this was where Brittany would take Santana on her last stop of the day, before Santana would take over.

"My last stop is... let me hear a drumroll!"

Santana made a drumroll noise.

"A culinary adventure!" Brittany shouted in excitement, meanwhile, Santana was the contrary to excited. "We're taking a cooking class together!"

"But Britt... no... I don't want you to hurt yourself again."

"Please, baby. It's just one class." Brittany pleaded. "We're only going to make muffins! Besides, you, my knight, can protect me!"

"My feet hurt. Can't we just go home? I'll buy you cupcakes on the way..."

"But we were just home? Besides, there's a few people I want you to meet in there too. Please? For me?"

Santana's heart swelled as she heard Brittany say 'home'. Brittany called _her_ place home...

"Do we have to?"

Brittany pecked Santana's lips for the hundred time that day.

Maybe it was the _for me_, or the peck that made it. Santana was caving in, and she was caving in fast.

"Uh-huh... besides, I can't wait to lick some of that batter off of your fingers... yeah, baby..." Brittany moaned in Santana's ear before licking her lips at the thought. Santana shivered as her breath hit the Latina's skin.

"Uh-huh... yeah? Uhm... well, fine then. Let's go!" Santana practically dragged a smirking Brittany with her inside the building. It was almost too easy to persuade Santana.

The moment they stepped inside the building Brittany picked up her phone to make a call.

"Hi! Yes! We're on the bottom floor. We'll be up there in a minute! Tell the girls I said hi! Oh, yeah, you're right, I can say hi to them in a minute... See you soon!"

* * *

Brittany followed the directions she had gotten. Seventh floor, fifth door to the right.  
They entered the room and was met with a room filled with, what Brittany would describe as a big kitchen filled with small kitchens. Santana didn't count, but she was sure that the room had more than ten workstations.  
They were the only ones there, except for...

"Oh. My. God."

"Well, well, well... if it isn't my homegirl, Lopez."

"What are you doing here! I thought you went back home to Britland!" Santana asked as she hugged her old friend.

"Well, Britt called me and asked if I wanted to join you on your date, couldn't miss that, you know." Joanne sent a wink towards Brittany, something that didn't go unnoticed by Santana.

"No flirting with my girl, okay." Santana said sternly.

"Sooo, you're officially a couple, huh?"

"Well... no... but... uhh..." Santana stammered out.

"Hi, Joanne. Great seeing you again!" Brittany greeted the other blonde.

"You too! Great seeing that you're still swooning over Santana here." Joanne said and slapped the Latina playfully on the shoulder, who let out an '_ow'._

"Of course, always." Brittany grinned. "Where's Dani?" she asked Joanne.

"She should be here somewhere, with the cute little girl..."

"Who's Dani? And who's a cute little girl?" Santana questioned.

"Danielle's my mummy and I'm a cute little girl!" a blonde girl with pigtails entered the room.

"Laura!" Brittany shouted.

"Britty!" the young blonde shouted back as she saw her friend.

"I've missed you! I think you've gotten taller since the last time I saw you!"

"I think it's you who's shrinking."

"Laura. No joking..."

"Sorry, mummy..."

Someone cleared her throat. Santana.

"I recognize you two from somewhere..." the Latina said as she looked between the small girl with pigtails and the woman who wore a chef hat on her head.

"Sorry, I'm Dani. Photographer by night, not as good as you though, culinary teacher at day and mother twenty-four hours a day. Pleasure meeting you, I've heard a lot about you." Dani said and reached out her hand to greet Santana.

"Pleasure meeting you too." Santana smiled. "And who is this?" the Latina looked down at the young girl.

"Santana, this is my best friend, Laura." Brittany introduced Laura.

"Oh, I recognize you now! We met at the Valentina Awards, didn't we?"

"That's right! That's when I met my bestie, Britty! And you! And you!" Laura said proudly and smiled brightly at the older women surrounding her, pointing at Brittany, Santana and Joanne.

_When did Laura meet Joanne?_

"I'm happy to finally meet you. Britty has told me a lot about you." Santana smiled and greeted Laura.

"Well, ladies, shall we get started? I heard that cupcakes are on today's schedule?" Dani said as she walked to the front of the room.

"Cupcakes!" Laura chanted.

"Where are all the other's?" Santana asked. It couldn't just be them on the cooking class, or could it?

"Well, this is a private class. It's just going to be us." the chef said happily.

"I want blueberry cupcakes." Laura said as she danced after her mother, Brittany right behind her with Santana and Joanne in tow.

* * *

Ten minutes later and Santana was running around in their kitchen area like a crazy person, making sure that Brittany didn't touch a thing.

Brittany wasn't allowed to break the eggs, measure the flour or turn on the oven. Santana meant that eggshells and flour can get in people's eyes, and that would be a bitch.

"Why can't I do anything?" Brittany pouted from the corner as Santana was running around with a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other.

"Britty is right, you should let her do something." Laura came up to defend her best friend.

Either Santana didn't listen, or she didn't hear.

"Hey, Britt!" Joanne was shouting from across the room. "You need to take pictures of her wearing that ridiculous apron. Oh God..." the Brit was laughing at the view in front of her. Her best friend running around, frantically looking for something, her hair in a high bun, wearing an apron, making her look like a 50's housewife. Not to forget mentioning the flour all over her face.

"You're right, Jo. Since I don't have anything else to do, anyway..."

Brittany grabbed her phone and took a picture of the, now, angry Latina in front of her.

"Why did you tell her to do that?" Santana barked at her friend.

"Oh, well. What else can she do? You're just telling her to just sit there." Joanne shrugged before she poured flour in her own bowl. "Rude."

"_Puh-lease_." Santana rolled her eyes. "Britt doesn't mind, right Britt?" the brunette looked at her blonde, who seemed caught up in her phone. "Britt?"

"Britty..." Laura pulled in Brittany's shirt. "Santana is talking to you." she continued as she got the blonde's attention.

"Oh, sorry. Twitter." Brittany said and held up her phone.

"Santana was just saying how you probably don't mind just sitting there like a happy husband while she does all the work." Joanne said.

"I didn't..."

"She did." Laura added, nodding.

"Oh, but I want to make cupcakes too." the pout returning to Brittany's face.

"Fine. You can add the sugar." the brunette huffed.

"Yay!"

Brittany added the sugar. She even asked if she could mix it, but she wasn't allowed to do that, since it was electricity and her hair might catch the mixer... and that, that wouldn't be a nice view.

But something that Brittany was allowed to do, was to pick what to decorate the cupcakes with and to later pimp them. Making the muffins into cute cupcakes.

She was also allowed to taste the batter. As promised, she got to taste it from Santana's finger, and vice versa.

"Britt, keep it PG while my daughter is watching, okay?"

"What's PG? Mummy? Britty? What's PG?" Laura questioned as the older women looked at each other, trying to hold back giggles. "Why is no one answering me!" the little girl gave up on getting a reply and returned to her own workstation to finish her own blueberry muffins.

Yes, even Laura got to do her own cupcakes, while Brittany was stuck with bossy Santana.  
Brittany thought housewife Santana was kind of hot though...

* * *

The girls chatted away as they waited for the muffins to bake.  
They prepared the frostings and other decorations, but they had some extra time to kill before taking out the cakes from the ovens.  
Santana, of course, didn't let Brittany put them in the oven since she didn't want the blonde to burn herself.  
Joanne just smiled at her friend as she spoke with Danielle, while Brittany didn't approve of not being allowed to do anything, except for making the cakes look cute... but that wasn't until they were almost done.  
The whole point with taking the cooking class was to make Santana realize that it was safe for her to be in the kitchen and actually make her own food, even though it wasn't that tasty, she still wanted to try it.

"I'm just going to check my twitter." Santana announced as they waited.

A few seconds later a shout was heard from Santana, and Brittany hurried up next to her girl.

"What is it, honey? Are you okay?" Brittany asked worriedly.

"No!" Santana shouted, her eyes glued at the small display in front of her.

Brittany's eyes averted from Santana, and turned down to see what the Latina was looking at.

"I think it's cute."

"Why did you do that..." Santana pouted. Brittany tried to make it go away by kissing it, but it didn't. Santana kept looking at the picture on the display.

Soon enough, the three other girls were surrounding them, wondering what the fuss was about.

"What's going on?" Joanne questioned.

"Look what Britt posted on twitter!" Santana exclaimed and handed over the phone to her friend. "This is so embarrassing... Britt, you got over 200000 followers!"

Santana expected support from her friend. But what she really should've expected, was what actually happened. She should've known that Joanne would burst out laughing.

The blonde Brit was now crying in between laughing, steadying herself by holding onto the sink.

"Let me see! Let me see!" Laura jumped up and down so she could get a peek on this thing that seemed so funny.

"Yes! Here, cutie!" Joanne handed over the phone to the blonde girl.

"You look funny!" Laura exclaimed as she looked between the picture of Santana and the real Santana. "You look exactly like that right now."

"Laura." Dani said warningly as she looked at her daughter. But she couldn't keep that serious stance for very long, as she too saw the picture of Santana looking absolutely adorable in her hideous apron, frantic look and flour covering her tan cheeks.

"I think you're beautiful." Brittany chimed before kissing Santana.

"Get a room!" Joanne shouted.

"Why should they get a room? They're in a room." Laura said.

"Well, they need a room so that they can get some privacy." Joanne explained, hoping not to say too much.

"Oh yeah, my mum said that you two needed some privacy the other night when you were over for dinner..."

"What!" Santana shouted as she looked bewildered between Dani and her best friend.

"Hey, why are you so surprised?"

"You're my best friend! You're supposed to tell me if you're going on a _date_!" Santana said with a hint of disappointment.

"A date? No one said anything about a date. And by the way, it was Britt here who told me about _your_ date, not you."

"So?" Santana said defensively.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Baby..." Brittany whispered as she snaked her arm around Santana's waist, calming down the Latina..

"Whipped!"

"Oh, very mature Joanne! I hope your cupcakes will burn!"

Santana and Joanne were fighting a lot, but they were still the very best of friends.

"Tell her you're sorry." Brittany whispered into Santana's ear, letting her tongue touch the lobe, making the Latina shiver.

"No, Britt..."

"Baby, you got too much pride. Please, apologize. For me?"

There it was again! The '_for me_'_. _She could never deny Brittany anything...

"Hey, Jo. I'm sorry for not telling you. I should've told you. I'm really sorry."

"Man, what did you do to her, Britt? Santana actually look like she means it, for once!"

"_Joanne_." Danielle said sternly, looking at Joanne with a look hard to read.

"Sorry. Hey, S, I'm sorry too. I should've told you about Dani, and I shouldn't have shouted at you."

_Whipped!_

"It's cool. But I won't forgive you until you two have told me all about your date!"

"I'm curious too." Brittany said. "But keep it PG, okay?" the blonde teased before high fiving Santana.

* * *

An hour later they had gossiped, decorated all the cupcakes and cleaned their kitchens.

It was time to leave.

Since Brittany hadn't been allowed to work on the batter, Santana hadn't been allowed to touch the decorating process and the Latina had kept herself busy by tweeting.  
So even though they hadn't been allowed to do certain things, they had still done fifty-fifty.  
They got a nice paper box from Dani to put the cupcakes in, which they were saving for dessert later that day.

They thanked for everything and wished to meet everyone again soon.  
Laura was clinging to Brittany, hugging her tighter than ever, it was out of happiness. Because Laura was so happy that she had been able to meet her big idol again. And Brittany promised that it would happen again soon.

To Brittany's surprise Joanne had managed to get them special price for the class.  
Free of charge.

Santana just thought that having her best friend dating a chef had it's perks. Nice food. For free.

* * *

Right now, Santana was doubting herself, not really knowing why she actually brought Brittany here.  
It was smelly, and noisy. But at least Brittany seemed to enjoy it, that was the most important thing, right?  
It shouldn't matter if she, herself, would make a total fool out of herself for being scared to almost every animal.  
So, yeah, she had never had a pet when she was a kid, so she had never really experienced any close contact with animals.  
This, this was extremely embarrassing...

"I think... oh God! I think it pee'd on me!"

"It's not an '_it_', Santana, it's a guinea pig. Besides, I think it's cute." Brittany said as she took the small animal from Santana.

"Did you hear it, San! It purred!" Brittany said excitedly as she kept stroking the guinea pig. "What?" Brittany said as she looked up at Santana.

"You just called me 'San'. I shouldn't make a big deal out of it, but I just noticed that you haven't called me that before." Santana smiled happily.

"Uh-huh, _San_, I think you should take the guinea pig again. I think it likes us."

"Oh, o-okay." Santana said and reluctantly took the guinea pig, holding it a little too tight since she was afraid that she would drop it. "Why is it squealing? I think I'm hurting it! Oh, God! Britt, take it away from me, please! It's going to bite me! Please, Britt! Take it away from me!" Santana shouted as she held out the tiny animal for Brittany, who immediately took it.

"Calm down honey. Are you afraid of it?"

"What? No! That tiny creature can't even harm a worm! Pshhh... me? Afraid? Don't think so."

"You seem afraid of it..."

"But I'm not."

Brittany decided to play a little with Santana, and quickly held up the guinea pig so that it was right in front of Santana's face. The Latina jumped back and let out a loud shrieking sound.

"Yeah, right. Not afraid, Santana." Brittany giggled.

"What would you have done if you had a hairy monster up in your face!"

"You're calling this little cutie a monster?" Brittany raised an eyebrow at Santana before turning her attention to the animal. "Did you hear her? Monster Sanny called _you_ a monster. Not nice. Nuh-uh..." Brittany said in the most adorable voice that Santana had ever heard.

"Sorry little _pig_, but you peed on me. Baby, I gotta go wash my hands, this is disgusting."

"Yeah? I'll come with you. Just want to say bye to this little cutie here."

"Don't you dare think about sneaking her out in your pocket, Britt."

"Of course not..." Brittany said sadly as she put down the guinea pig in it's cage. Stroking it a few more times, hearing it purr adorably. "Bye little ginny piggy."

Too bad that Santana had seen through her plan on sneaking out the guinea pig...

* * *

"Oh God! It's talking! It sounds like Finn! Oh God! It's hideous! I gotta record this!"

"Finn? Rachel's ex?"

"Yes! Oh, this is brilliant. Gotta go home and see if I got a video of him somewhere. Put it on YouTube. Compare the giant doofus and the brilliant parrot. Genius..."

"Hi, I'm a doofus. Doofus. Have a good day!" the parrot chanted.

"Hello, Doofus." Brittany said happily as she reached out her hand to shake... hands?

"Doofus. You're a doofus." the bird said.

"I'm not sure if I like him..." Brittany said as she eyed the green and red feathered bird in front of her.

"I think he's cool. But if you don't like him, we can go look at puppies instead?" Santana said calmly as she looked at Brittany, seeing the almost hurt expression from being called a doofus from a bird. But the hurt expression changed into one of excitement as the word _puppies_ was spoken.

"Puppies!"

"Puppies it is!"

* * *

"Look at this! So cute! No! This, oh my God, do you see the spots! Wait... awww... look at those eyes! Aww... Ahh! I want one! Santana! I want one! They all are so cute! I think I want one without spots though!"

Brittany was in heaven, patting as many puppies she could and they all seemed to like the blonde stranger who was eager to run her fingers through soft fur.  
Santana was also playing with a few of the dogs, but mostly, she was glancing at Brittany, finding it really hard to avert her eyes when Brittany was acting so adorably.  
One day she would give Brittany a puppy, she _so_ would.

"Britt, calm down, stop squealing! You're scaring them." Santana laughed at the blonde who was amazed by all the puppies.

"Look! It's a Golden Retriever and a German Shepherd cuddling! It's us but dog versions! Look how cute they are Santana!"

"Honestly, I can't see any resemblance."

"You're no fun, San." Brittany pouted, her eyes glued at the two puppy versions of them. It so was them. Tthe color of the fur... Santana's brown hair and her own blonde... and the German Shepherd was the smaller spoon, exactly like Santana! "Just look at them!"

"Well, okay, now when I look more closely. I think I can actually see a resemblance. You share those kind eyes, the difference being that yours are blue, much nicer. But I definitely know where you got your puppy eyes skills from now. And I'm totally as fierce as the German Gepard dog."

"German Shepherd."

"That's what I said."

"No. You said 'gepard', I heard you clearly!"

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry for not being as good with animal names as you are!"

"Did you know that in Swedish, Norwegian and Danish, 'gepard' means 'Cheetah'? You're totally as fierce as those too, so it's okay."

"Yeah? You and your multilinguality is kind of hot. Why do you never speak different languages with me?"

"Well, first off, you wouldn't understand me. And second of all... you wouldn't understand me!"

"Try me." Santana challenged.

"Okay. Können Sie mich verstehen? Vad var det jag sa... Ik hou van jou, Santana."

"Sooo, that meant churning Mitch something. Something about wad and Jagermeister? Then you said something about me." Santana improvised.

"Yeah, you really wouldn't understand me."

"So, care to translate for me?"

"No, pero tu hablo Español for me!"

"You don't really speak Spanish, do you?" Santana asked, raising an eyebrow, already knowing the answer.

"No, pero... it's muy sexy! It's like musica!"

"Te quiero, Brittany. Te quiero..." Santana reached for Brittany's hand and squeezed it.

Brittany and Santana had tuned out from the barking and whimpering puppies that were begging for their attention. They only heard or saw each other.

"Jeg er så forelsket i deg..." Brittany said as she looked lovingly at Santana. She surely knew what 'te quiero' meant, but she was sure that Santana didn't understand a thing of what she had said.

"I..." Santana cleared her throat after staring into deep blue eyes for what felt like minutes. "Maybe we should get back to play with the animals before we have to leave?"

"Yeah, okay. Do you want to look at any animals in particular? Or are you scared?"

"I'm not scared. I'm fearless."

"Fine then, I want to look at the guinea pigs again." Santana's eyes widened in fear.

"Uhh, can we go see the snakes?"

"Snakes? You're scared of guinea pigs, but not snakes?"

"Uh, no. Snakes are badass! Right?"

"Well, if you say so..." Brittany said as she looked at Santana warily. She knew that this was Santana trying to prove herself as a badass, she was a little worried about the Latina, but if it was what Santana wanted, then she would let Santana see the snakes.

In all honesty, Santana was scared to death. She had never seen a snake closely, and every time she saw one one television she shivered. She was not sure if this was such a good idea or if she would pass out while proving herself as a badass for Brittany.

"Let's go tell Eric that we want to go see the snakes and maybe some lizards too? I love amphibians!" Brittany said.

"Yeah, better go get Eric for help..."

* * *

Eric worked at the animal shelter, he was a handsome young man with long brown hair flowing over his shoulders.  
He was like Brittany, fearless when it came to animals, and right now, Santana wished she was brave like Eric and Brittany.

"Santana do you want to hold it?" Eric said as he let the snake snake his way up around his neck.

"I-I think... I think I'll pass. Touching it, touching it was enough for me." Santana stuttered as she looked at the giant snake. Its creepy dark eyes looking everywhere but at her, the tongue being out of it's cave, making this "_ssssss_" noise that creeped Santana out.

"I want to hold it! I want to hold it!" Brittany clapped her hands excitedly. "It's bigger than the last snake I held!"

"You have held a snake before?" Santana said in surprise, she was a little proud that her blonde was so brave.

"Of course. I did an editorial with snakes once. It was pretty cool."

"Good, then you know how this works. You will hold it in your hands, then put it behind your neck, like a scarf. I'll help you lift it over. Okay? If you think it's too heavy, just tell me and I'll help you."

"You're insane, Britt..." Santana mumbled.

"Yay!"

"Hold still now, okay."

"Holy shit, Britt... holy shit..." Santana repeated as she watched as the snake was put in the hands of her beloved blonde.

"I'm going to call it Banana! It's like... yellow... and loooong, like a banana!" Brittany said happily as the enormous snake was hanging around her neck.

"Holy shit, Britt! It's going to strangle you! What if it strangles you!" Santana was starting to panic.

"No, don't worry, Brittany. He was treated very well by his last owner, until he died..."

Santana was about to open her mouth, but Eric interrupted her.

"And no, Santana. He was not strangled to death. The owner was old. And, ehum, _Banana_ here is going to live at a zoo, starting next week. I think he's really going to enjoy it there. He's different from other Burmese Pythons, this fella just loves the attention!"

"I love the skin, it's so cool! And it's so warm! Santana, take a picture?"

"Is that thing even legal!" Santana said as she fumbled with her camera, snapping a couple of pictures as Brittany posed.

"Yeah..."

"But it's... it's so big!"

"Honey, you need to calm down!"

"Britt, let it go! It might kill you!"

"Sorry, Eric. Maybe you should take Banana again. Baby, maybe we should go and calm you down, look at kittens or something?" Brittany said as Eric carefully took Banana and put him back in his terrarium.

"But kittens hate me! Cats hate me!" Santana whined.

"Baby, baby, listen to me..." Brittany said as she got closer to Santana, who had moved away while Brittany had been holding the snake. "You're a cheetah, San. The fastest and most fierce cat out of all of them. If a kitten would hate you, it would only be because it was jealous." Brittany face was so close to Santana's now, their noses nudged.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone. You know where the kittens are." Eric said, he walked away being ignored completely.

"Uh-huh..."

"Okay? Jealous kittens. I'm sure that they won't hate you though. These kittens have been through some bad times, that's why they're here at the animal shelter, yes?

"Yes." Santana said as they began walking towards the room with the kittens.

"So don't do something stupid in front of them, okay? And remember, just because they come from poor places, doesn't mean that you should give them money. They might go back to old habits. I had to put Tubbs into rehab once, for drug addiction. And once, I caught his paw in my piggy bank, pretty sure that was not the first time either... that little rascal... I loved him though!"

"Britt!" Santana interrupted.

"Huh?"

"You're the smartest person I know, but I'm sure you knew that already."

"Uhm..." Brittany felt her cheeks heat up. "I don't think, I don't think a lot of people would agree."

"No, Britt. Look at me. If anyone would say anything different, they would lie. They would be jealous, the same way the kittens are jealous at me. They would be jealous at you. You can see right through people, hell, even through animals! You're the single most caring and loving person that I have ever met, and that's something that needs to be cherished."

"You're quite a charmer, Santana."

"Well, yeah..."

_Meow... meow... meow... meow..._

Santana's body stiffened.

"Okay, breathe, Santana. They are harmless. Like the guinea pig!"

"But the guinea pig pee'd on me!"

"Oh, harmless like the snake then?"

"Not really helping here, Britt!"

"But Banana didn't really do anything bad to me, right?"

"No! Except for doing that creepy noise with its tongue! _Ssssssss_! And it _could have_ killed you! Uhh!"

"What about the fishes, San! Innocent like the fishes! Or puppies! I know you liked the puppies!"

"What about sharks?"

"I'm not talking about sharks, San. I'm talking about guppies! They're cute, right? And completely innocent!"

"I... I have never seen a guppy before, I think..."

"I'm sure that you would love them. I had one when I was little. One day it was just gone though. Probably Tubbs..."

Santana took a few deep breaths as she looked down at the kittens on the floor.  
They were really tiny, and actually, Santana found them cute. But just a little bit.  
But come one! They were so tiny, and hairy, and they were running around playing with kitten toys! Anyone with a heart would think that they were cute!

"I think I'm ready to meet the kittens, Britt."

"I'm here with you, okay."

"Yes, come on now, before I regret it." Santana said as she was beginning to crouch down.

"Remember what I said, don't give them any money." Brittany whispered, hoping that the kittens wouldn't hear her.

"I won't." Santana said, grabbing Brittany's hand in hers. Better to be safe than sorry, she needed Brittany close if a kitten would decide to attack her...

* * *

"This was so much better than going to the zoo! I'm having so much fun today! It's so cute how you're afraid of every animal except for fishes, the parrots and the puppies, but you still took me here." Brittany beamed. "I really think that the kittens liked you. You were so-so adorable when you were running after them! And tickling them! They were so soft!"

"I've told you already, I am _not_ afraid of animals. They just don't like me and I can't care to like them back." Santana shrugged. "But yes, I took you to the animal shelter, because I know that you love animals. I guess it wasn't as special as going to Antarctica to study penguins, but I'm glad that you had fun. I had fun too."

"You're the best, San. And I can't believe that you remember that I went to Antarctica to study penguins!"

"It's kind of hard to forget. It isn't really a popular tourist destination..."

"Uhm, Santana?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I want that guinea pig. I want to call it Ginny. Like that girl in Harry Potter, except that she wasn't a guinea pig and Ginny the guinea pig isn't a ginger. What do you think? Should I get it? It's so cute!"

"Uhm, yeah?" _Think quick Santana. Think quick..._ "I think I'm allergic to guinea pigs though. So we wouldn't be able to hang out as often." she said and let out a fake sneeze.

"Oh, okay. Fine then, I'll just have my Santana to take care of then." Brittany said knowing well enough that Santana was not allergic to any guinea pigs.

"That sounds pretty good. I hope that Santana will get the same treatment as Ginny though. Some stomach rubbing and maybe some hair stroking if she's behaving?"

"Oh, you bet that there will be some rubbing with Santana. Maybe tonight if she's lucky." Brittany said mischievously. Causing Santana to almost choke on her own saliva. "Mhm, I will never forget this day."

* * *

Another dress change. This time at their own apartments.  
Santana had said 'dress nicely, but not over the top. Casually sexy.'  
She knew that she kind of had her already, but she still wanted to impress Santana with her looks.  
That's why Brittany wore her little black dress. A strapless, barely over the knee. A duck print sweater on top of that.

The look Santana gave her as she opened the door was so worth it, even with the sweater on, Santana's mouth had opened and she reassembled a fish. Opening and closing her mouth, not finding her words.

"You look nice." Brittany said as she leaned in to kiss Santana on the cheek. "I remember that hat." the blonde smiled.

Santana was wearing a black blazer with a thin shirt underneath. The bottom part of it was made out of lace, and of course, it was a v-neck, showing of her assets perfectly. She wore a black hat on her head, pimped out with small feathers, the same hat she wore the first time the two officially met at the party in Amsterdam.

"Yeah, it's my favorite. You look very nice too, Britt." Santana finally said. "Oh, yeah. I got you these. Remember when I gave you that single lily? I remember you told me those were your favorites, so I got a whole bouquet this time."

"Mhm, I love them! Thank you!" Brittany said happily and kissed Santana on the lips. "Come on in while I'll put these in the water?"

"Sure, but we can't stay for very long. We gotta get going soon!" Santana shouted after Brittany as she waited on the couch for the blonde to return.

Soon enough, they were on the way to another secret destination.

* * *

"You're working today?" Brittany pouted as she saw where they were. This was their day. She didn't want Santana to be working, especially not if she would be working with some good looking models...

"Definitely not, I got the day off. I just wanted to take you here, because this is where we... well, it's an important place for us." Santana smiled brightly as she put her hand on Brittany's back, leading the way up the path to the small house. Entering with the key she hid underneath the flower pot on the porch. Maybe not the safest place, but definitely a classic.

Soft music was playing, the tones coming from one of the rooms, indicating that so far, Mike and Tina had done their part of the deal.

"I'll show you around. I don't think you saw much of the place the last time. First stop, the basement!"

They walked hand in hand, Brittany walked in front of Santana down the stairs.

"Santana, Santana..." Brittany said and pulled in Santana's shirt. "I think you've been robbed." she whispered.

"What? No! It looks like this without all the Hansel and Gretel props!" Santana laughed. "Well, almost..." she whispered to herself knowingly.

It did look different from when Brittany had been there the last time.  
The room was almost swiped empty. The lounge was still there, the camera equipment was pushed up against the wall and a bunch mattresses, blankets and pillows were randomly laying on the floor, making it look like it was inhabited by a homeless.

"It's looks so spacey like this!"

"Yeah, I know. It looks huge." Santana quickly looked down at her watch. 7PM. "Actually, we should get up again. Are you hungry?"

"Now when you're mentioning it, I'm starving! Are we going somewhere? We can still eat our cupcakes too, right? I think I can stuff them in my purse and sneak them in..."

"Such a bad girl, Britt." Santana laughed. "But no, we're staying here."

"Order take out?"

"Nope. I'll show you."

* * *

There it was. A table for two. Lit candles and soft Italian music playing in the background.

The table was set with everything you may need for a three-course meal, except for plates. This, however, would not be a three-course dinner...

"Wow, Santana! It's beautiful!" Brittany said in awe. "You didn't have to do all of this. Now I feel bad for taking you to a hot dog cart." the blonde pouted as she got pushed inside the room.

"I want you to know, that today with you, has been the best day in my entire life. Every day with you are the best days, but today, today takes the first prize."

"So you don't mind the hot dogs?" Brittany kept pouting.

"No. I could eat hot dogs every day, if only I got to do it with you." Santana whispered as she kissed away the pout. "Now, go and sit down.

Brittany walked over to the chair, she took off her sweater and put it on the chair. Santana pushed the chair back for Brittany to sit, then she pushed it forward as she sat.

"My baby is such a gentleman."

"Uh-huh..." it was the only thing Santana replied with as she herself sat down on her chair on the other side of the table. Now when Brittany had taken off the sweater, she had noticed the dress, or, well, the cleavage.

"Baby?"

"Yes?" Santana said, her eyes clearly stuck at Brittany's chest.

"Do you like what you see?" Brittany said in a sultry voice, waking Santana up from her trance.

"Uhm, what?" Santana said as she looked up and met blue eyes. Her own cheeks heated up, knowing well enough that she had been caught staring.

"Do you like what you see?" Brittany repeated and shimmied, making her breasts bounce.

"They, they look very nice, Britt." Santana said, feeling her mouth go dry.

"Mhm, just nice though? I'm a little disappointed."

"No, no! They look _really, really_ nice, Brittany. Really nice."

"And on a scale..."

"Oh, look!" Santana shouted. "A waiter!"

"Hello, my ladies. Welcome to _Casa Lopez_."

"Hi, Dave." Santana said to the waiter of the evening.

"Hello." Brittany's cheeks reddened, not knowing that there had been someone else there too. She hoped that he hadn't heard her. But the way he smiled knowingly at her told her something else.

"Can I have your orders?"

"There's no menu..." Brittany said as she looked around on the table.

"Can I order for you?" Santana asked.

"Sure." Brittany said happily, not knowing what else to do since she didn't know what would be offered.

"Well then. One Brittany speciale for my lady over here and I think, I, is the lasagna any good?"

"Yes, the lasagna is very delicious." Dave played along as he scribbled their orders on a little note.

"Then I'll have the lasagna. If I wouldn't like it I guess I could eat from the Brittany speciale?" Santana asked as she looked at Brittany who nodded. "Yeah, and then we want some bubbly to drink, along with water. Please put it in ice. And breadsticks too! Lot's of them! In a basket! Oh, and shrimp cocktails!" Santana said excitedly. She couldn't wait to see the look on Brittany.

"Is that all, Miss Lopez?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Your food will be out with you shortly."

* * *

True to his words. The next minute Dave came back with a basket of breadsticks and two shrimp cocktails.

The minute after that he came out with a jug of water and a bucket of ice, holding what occurred to be a bottle of champagne.

"Baby, I don't drink champagne..." Brittany whispered as Dave left the room.

"Why are we whispering?" Santana replied in a whisper.

"I thought you knew that I didn't drink?" Brittany said with her normal speaking voice. She didn't think that Santana was like _him_, she thought that Santana would remember.

"Who said that it's champagne in the bottle?"

"I just, I assumed it was? It looks like a champagne bottle. It isn't champagne?"

"Don't worry, it's not champagne, or any other alcoholic beverage. I think you'll love the taste of it."

"So you remembered?" Brittany said as she looked at her girl.

"Of course. How could I forget?"

"I don't know. But I'm glad you did." Brittany said, not being able to stand up and reach over the table to place a kiss on Santana, she opted for a little flirting under the table instead.

"A lasagna is ready. It was you who ordered that one, yes?" Dave said as he came back into the room.

"Yes, it's mine. Thank you, sir." Santana said as she smiled down at the food placed in front of her.

"The Brittany speciale will be out any minute now." the man said as he left the room.

"What exactly is a Brittany speciale? I have never heard of it before..." Brittany asked, trying to remember if she had heard of it before.

"Oh, I don't know. I guess you'll have to wait and see." Santana shrugged.

Dave heard the blonde ask what a _Brittany speciale_ was. He just smiled knowingly, knowing exactly what a Brittany speciale is.

"I know I said it already. But you look stunning tonight." Santana said as they waited for Brittany's food.

"Thanks, you too." Brittany said bashfully. Not sure why. Maybe it was the romantic setting.

"A Brittany speciale? This must be yours." Dave returned with a plate.

"A salad?" Brittany said in surprise as she looked down at the green and red mix.

"Oh, no, not at all. There's more to come." Dave said as he hurried out of the room.

"What's going on, Santana?"

Santana didn't have the time to reply, because soon Dave was back.

This time he returned with three other's in tow, all of them dressed in classic waiter's outfits, black and white with a bow tie. All of them holding two plates each.

"What..." Brittany looked with wide eyes as eight plates were placed in front of her, all of them with different cuisines.

"Enjoy your meal. Dessert will be ready when you two are ready." Dave winked and the waiters left the room.

Santana moved her chair and placed it next to Brittany's.

"I know you liked Italian, but I didn't know what was your favorite. So I got you a little bit of everything. We got some pasta bolognese, some pizza..."

"Mhm, my favorite with pineapples!"

"I know, you always order that. Anyway, then this is ciuppin, Verdi di Sicilia, some stuffed calamari, chicken risotto, parma ham and meatballs."

"You got me all of this?"

"Yeah, but you don't have to eat everything, obviously. You need space for dessert and cupcakes too! And if you wouldn't like anything, there's always the bin, okay? So don't feel that you need to eat everything."

"It's a lot of food..." Brittany bit her lip.

"Uh-huh..."

"Are you hungry?"

"Starving."

"So then why didn't you order the Brittany speciale?" Brittany teased.

"Well, that wouldn't have been fun! I wanted to surprise you." Santana winked. "And hey! I would like to make a toast before we start eating!"

"Yes?"

"Hold on, let's pour some of this in our glasses first." Santana said as she reached for the bottle. Carefully opening it and pouring some of the see-through liquid in their glasses. It did look like champagne. "I promise, it's non-alcoholic."

Santana took her knife and hit her glass with it, getting Brittany's attention, which she already had.

Brittany began to giggle at the Latina's playful antics.

"Hello everyone! I'd like to make a toast to this amazing girl called Brittany Pierce. She's this amazing girl that I got the pleasure of meeting quite a while ago. I'm really happy that I got to spend this day with her, I've had a great time and I'm proud to say that I'm in love with the bravest and smartest girl on this planet. Cheers!"

Santana took a gulp of her drink. But Brittany just stared. She stared at Santana, the most perfect woman alive.

It was as if Santana got this power over her that made it impossible to speak or move.

"Let's eat!" Santana shouted, missing the way that Brittany was looking at her.

The blonde finally woke up from her trance, she intertwined her left hand with Santana's right.

Realizing how amazing it was to be with someone left-handed. It opened up a lot of new options, like holding hands and eating at the same time, for example.

"I love you." Brittany whispered and nudged her nose into Santana's neck, leaving a soft kiss there, before turning back to the mission at hand. Food. "I don't know where to start." Brittany giggled.

"What about the Verdi di Sicilia?"

"What is it?"

"Spinach, basil, tomatoes... I think that's a mushroom... onions, zucchini and garlic."

"That sounds pretty good."

"Yeah, and it tastes like heaven."

"But maybe we should start with the warm food?" Brittany said, her eyes locked at the delicious looking lasagna, which was supposed to be for Santana. But agreeing to share, meant that she could eat Santana's food too, right?

"You want lasagna?" Santana asked as she saw where Brittany was looking.

"Yes, please. Unless you want it all to yourself."

"No, no. We're going to share everything, unless you want something all to yourself."

And then they began to eat.

They tasted everything placed on the table. Sipping the drink, which apparently was some bubbly soda, in between shoving delicious food into their mouths.

Sometimes they fed each other, giggling and laughing.

They talked. The topics went from the food to animals and to exercising, never really leaving what had happened during their day together.

* * *

"I'm stuffed..." Santana said from her seat next to Brittany.

"Mhm, me too." Brittany said contently as she drank some water, still holding Santana's hand in hers. "There's still so much food left though. I'd feel bad to throw it away."

"We can save it for tomorrow if you want to?"

"Yeah! But not the ciuppin, please. Eww..."

"I agree. Not the ciuppin." Santana smiled and did some gagging noises.

"Can you handle some dessert now though?"

"No more food, Britt..." Santana groaned, clutching her stomach with her free hand.

"Hey, this is all because of you. It wasn't my decision to serve so much food!"

"No, but you fed me with way too much of that bolognese."

"Gotta feed my baby!"

"This baby is going to end up fat."

"Nope! Maybe some nightly activities might make my baby burn some of those calories?" Brittany whispered seductively. "Not that you need to burn any calories..." she added.

"What are you saying?" Santana asked innocently.

"I'm saying that I want dessert!"

* * *

Brittany ate her dessert, chocolate cake, as Santana watched her.

Santana didn't watch the blonde in a creepy way, she just looked at her, noticed how her facial expressions changed.

From the first piece of cake, when those blue eyes lit up after realizing how delicious the cake was. Until now, when Brittany tried to press down every single crumb of the cake, even though her stomach was full.

"Food coma..." Brittany mumbled as she rubbed her stomach with her right hand.

"I'm not sure how you did it." Santana said as she looked lovingly at Brittany.

"I'm not sure if I can move..."

"That's too bad. I thought we were going to burn calories tonight." Santana shrugged casually.

"What? Yes! Of course we are!"

"Eager, Britt?"

"Maybe..." the blonde blushed.

"Anyway, I was actually hoping that I could ask you for a dance or five tonight. But I guess that we'll have to do that some other time."

"Yeah, promise to dance some other time though?"

"Of course, I want to see you shake it!"

"Uh-huh..." Brittany mumbled, in her head she imagined Santana dancing for her.

"Want to go chill in the game room? Play some pinball or pool? Maybe watch television?"

"I'm awesome at pinball!"

"Yeah, you go first while I go tell Dave and the other's that we're done."

So they let go of each other's hands for the first time in over two hours.

* * *

"You weren't lying when you said that you were awesome at pinball." Santana muttered thirty minutes later.

"Nope. But shush now..." Brittany said as she pressed the different buttons on the arcade machine.

"I'll make you lose soon..." Santana said under her breath.

"What did you say?" the blonde kept pressing the buttons, not really paying any attention to the Latina.

"Nothing..."

"Yes! Another ball!"

"Hey Santana, we're leaving now. I'll be back working here in two days when you got your shoot with Valentina. Mike and Tina left a message, they want to meet this fabulous girl of yours soon. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Go get your girl!" Dave winked.

"Thank you so much for today, Dave. I'll give you a bonus this month."

"Oh, no. I don't need a bonus. It was so worth it, seeing you like this. So happy." Dave said happily. "Anyway, we're leaving now. Talk to you later, boss."

"Ha-ha. Bye Dave, I owe you a beer though."

"That you do!" Dave smiled. "Bye Britt!"

"Bye Dave!"

"Lock the door!" Santana shouted after her friends.

* * *

"Is the game more important than me?" Santana huffed.

"What, no?" Brittany left the game as it was and turned to face Santana who sat on the couch with crossed arms. "Baby..."

"Hm..."

"You're too adorable!"

"I don't want to be adorable! I'm a hot badass!"

"You're that too." Brittany laughed.

"Come here, please." Santana said and patted the spot next to her.

Both girls cuddled close to each other. They sat in silence, just holding each other.

"It's getting late. Should I call a cab for us?" Brittany said, breaking the silence.

"Oh, I was hoping that the date wouldn't end just yet and that, maybe you would sleep over? Here."

"Here? Where are we going to sleep? Besides, I don't have my pajama with me."

"I was thinking in the studio?"

"But there's nothing in the studio except for the lounge and those mattresses and... oh..."

"Yeah, I was thinking that we could build a blanket fort, since you're my princess, and we could cuddle and just enjoy each other's company?"

"A blanket _castle_?" Brittany grinned.

"I mean, if you think it sounds lame then we won't do it. I just thought it'd be fun and..."

"I want to do a blanket castle!" Brittany bounced on her feet in excitement.

"Really?"

"Yes! I have never slept or made a blanket castle before!"

"Really?"

"Yes! I'm happy that we'll make my first castle together. Come on! I'm so excited!"

* * *

"Put that chair there, and maybe one over there..." Brittany pointed, bossing her girl around. Well, she wasn't really bossing. Santana had offered to do the chair lifting and mattress pushing, so Brittany didn't have much else to do than to tell Santana where to put everything.

"Okay, will you get the blankets ready?"

"Sure, baby." Brittany said and kissed Santana's cheek as the Latina walked past her with a couple of chairs, placing them on different places around the queen sized mattress.

As the chairs were placed they began throwing the blankets over the mattress and the chairs.

The result was extraordinary.

The castle was big and had a lot of space. It was the perfect hideout with a lot of pillows to cuddle with.

Only one thing was missing...

"You got these lights too?" Brittany smiled as she found a box with christmas lights.

"Yeah, I thought it'd look extra cozy in there with them."

"Will you put them up?" Brittany said excitedly as she unboxed the lights.

"Sure." Santana took the box with the lights and crawled inside. She began to put up the lights all over the "roof". Making sure to cover properly. "Plug in the contact."

"Yes ma'am."

The multi-colored lights lit up in their castle and the two women crawled inside.

"It's so pretty in here!" Brittany said in awe as she got in right after Santana.

"Yeah." Santana smiled goofily as she looked right at Brittany. The prettiest of the prettiest.

* * *

"Baby?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think you can get the cupcakes for me?"

"You're still hungry?"

"No, but I thought I could feed you with them. There's some yummy frosting on them. Very lickable..."

"Oh, well, sure. I'll get them. In your purse?"

"Yes."

"I'll be right back."

* * *

"You got some pink frosting there." Brittany whispered as she leaned in to kiss Santana, licking at the frosting covered spot.

"Mhm..."

"Let me have a bite."

Santana held up the cupcake for Brittany to taste, the blonde biting down roughly.

"This is so good! You have to make these for me all the time... mhm..." Brittany moaned at the taste of the strawberry cupcake.

Santana didn't know what happened. One second she was feeding Brittany with a cupcake, the next Brittany had her finger up her face, painting it pink with frosting.

"What-what are you doing, Britt?" Santana giggled as she felt Brittany drag her finger across her cheek.

"Mhm, what do you think?" Brittany whispered as she let her tongue trail where her finger had been mere seconds ago.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Uh-huh..." Brittany mumbled as she licked broadly at the Latina's rosy cheek.

"You want to play, huh?" Santana mumbled.

Brittany didn't know what happened. One second she was licking frosting off of Santana. The next she was laying on her back with Santana on top of her, tickling her. She was begging for the brunette to stop in between giggles, but Santana ignored the request and kept moving her fingers across Brittany's dress, pressing down on the ribs, causing Brittany to giggle even more fiercely.

"S-s-stop!"

"No!"

"Please, San! Stop! C-c-can't breathe! San!" Brittany shouted in between giggles.

"You begged for it!" Santana shouted before stealing a cupcake and pressing it with the frosting down, crushing it on Brittany's neck. She stopped the tickling and Brittany stopped moving underneath her. Now it was her time to lick...

"Mhm, so good." Brittany whispered as Santana's velvety tongue licked at her neck.

* * *

They calmed down from the cupcake war. They were just laying next to each other. Looking, breathing and having their hands intertwined.

"Can I, can I ask you something?" Santana said after a moment of silence. She moved so that she was holding her body up on her elbows.

"Sure." Brittany said nervously as she looked up at brown eyes, who were gazing lovingly down at her.

"I know that we're pretty much almost together, and definitely exclusive. And especially after today. I already call you my girl." Santana began as her thoughts of the previous hours came to her mind, a smile spreading over her lips. "I've known since the moment I met you that there was something special about you. Now, I'm wondering if you would give me the honor and become my girlfriend? Officially. If you're ready, that is. If you aren't, then I totally understand, it still soon since... you know... I can wait... but I just..." the Latina rambled on, something that happened when she was nervous.

"Yes! I'm ready, San. I want to be able to call you my girlfriend, and I want to be yours. Even though I was yours from the start..." Brittany said and looked lovingly at Santana, the look she always gave the brunette.

Their lips locked in a slow but passionate kiss, that ended way too soon.

"One more thing." Santana reluctantly broke the kiss before fumbling in her pocket, causing Brittany to giggle before her eyes went comically wide. "Don't worry, I'm not proposing." _Yet._ Santana smiled nervously at the girl laying next to her who now stared at her intently. "It's a promise ring. I want you to wear it. If you want to." she said as she held up a silver ring formed so it had a small infinity shape in the middle.

"You're the best." Brittany's already wide grin was getting bigger as she looked up at the girl she could finally call her girlfriend. "I want you to put it on me." the blonde said and held out her hand for Santana to slide on the ring.

Santana pushed herself up and gently took Brittany's hand and squeezed it, before slipping the small ring onto the blonde's left ring finger. She then brought the hand up to her lips, kissing each knuckle.

Never once did they break the intense eye contact.

Brittany lifted up Santana so they were face to face. They felt the other's breathing on themselves, they heard each other's heartbeats, they felt the love oozing from the other.  
They belonged to each other, and finally, they had each other completely.

* * *

The colorful christmas lights were illuminating the inside of the blanket castle, where Santana was a strong knight and Brittany a beautiful princess.

What had started out as innocent cuddling, had now turned into a heated kissing session.  
They were kissing and grinding against each other, their hands were roaming over each other's bodies. Santana was sitting in between Brittany's legs, the model's legs wrapped around her waist.

"I don't go to third base at the first date." Brittany moaned as Santana massaged her breast over her dress.

"Oh really now? If I remember correctly, the first time..."

"Our first time was mind-blowing. Shut up and undress me already."

"Demanding, are we?" Santana teased.

"Yes, my _girlfriend _loves it when I tell her what to do." Brittany said cheekily with hooded eyes.

"Fuck, you're sexy."

"Fuck. Me." Brittany said, not really demanding, but still so that Santana that knew that she really wanted to.

With steady hands Santana moved her hands around Brittany, finding the zipper for Brittany's dress to zip her out of the tight, but sexy, outfit. However, right now, both of them would prefer each other without any obstacles in the shape of clothes.  
While Santana was working on Brittany's zipper, the blonde was working on Santana's zipper and button, for her pants. Struggling until Santana helped her unbuttoning, taking off her shirt at the same time.  
Now, here they were.  
Santana in only her underwear and Brittany in her unzipped dress...

"Take it off." Santana growled as she pulled at the soft material.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Brittany purred in reply. "But not yet." the blonde winked.

Brittany grabbed Santana's left hand, bringing it up to her lips. Taking the fingers into her mouth, sucking on each finger as if they were lollipops, kind of like she had done earlier that they. The Latina moaned at the gesture, feeling her already wet underwear get even more, ridiculously, wet and ruined.

Santana was watching as her hand, their hands, disappeared underneath Brittany's dress. The blonde making a way along her creamy leg, Santana's palm caressing those smooth legs. Up... up... she felt wetness on Brittany's thigh...  
What Santana was met with at the end of the road, was a feeling of wetness and direct touch to hot flesh...  
It almost made her explode right then and there, her mouth wide open as Brittany let out the most glorious noise that Santana had ever heard.

"You're not..." Santana gulped. "You're not wearing any..." Brittany shook her head and smirked coyly, as if that should've been obvious.

Santana moved her hand around underneath the dress, palming Brittany, noticing the lack of hair as she let her hand touch Brittany's most private exterior for the first time in a very long time.

"I was so... oh fuck, Santana." the blonde moaned as Santana ran her finger along the wet slit. "I was so scared that... that I would ruin the dress and those yoga pants with... with... ooh..."

Santana pushed a single digit inside of Brittany. Quickly feeling up the inside before pulling out completely. Earning a grunt of displeasure from the blonde.

"Off, now." Santana said, pointing towards the dress that barely hung over Brittany's body.

Brittany scurried out of the small piece of clothing and soon enough she sat completely naked in front of Santana, who herself had taken the opportunity to disrobe her own undergarments while Brittany took off her dress.

"I don't know how I did it, not touching you for so long." Santana whispered as her eyes landed on Brittany's perky breast.

"Me neither." Brittany said, practically drooling at the sight in front of her.

"You're so beautiful, so, so beautiful, Britt." Santana murmured as she slowly lowered Brittany down on the mattress, with herself on top of her.

"Baby, you're gorgeous..." Brittany whimpered as she felt Santana's hot breath on her, her hands lingering on the back of the brunette's head.

Brittany puckered her lips, and Santana saw that as an invitation to lean in to kiss her girlfriend.

Their tongues battled for dominance as they sucked, licked and bite down.

"I need you..." Brittany whispered, out of breath from the kissing.

Brittany let out a loud moan as Santana's soft lips sucked on her pulse point at the same time as she tweaked the blonde's nipples with just the right amount of pressure, making them stiff under her touch.

And just like that, Santana went back to kissing her girlfriend as she entered a finger inside of Brittany.  
It slid in with ease, almost too easy.

"God, you're so wet..." Santana said in pure fascination, never had she felt anything this good and soft before.

"Mhm, another one, please..." the blonde whimpered underneath Santana's touch.

Santana quickly did as her girl told her to, adding another finger.

"So tight..."

Both of them sighed at that.  
Brittany, because of the relaxation and pure pleasure she got from having Santana inside of her.  
Santana, because she absolutely loved the feeling of Brittany's velvety tightness around her fingers. She had done this to many other's before, but nothing really beat the feeling of Brittany.

"Hngh... uhh... yes..." Brittany moaned as she laid on her back with her legs spread wide open. Santana's experienced fingers moving in and out of the blonde at a steady pace, curling up at all the right places, feeling up the soft flesh from the inside. Santana flicked with her thumb over Brittany's clit as well as leaving a trail of soft kisses on Brittany's neck at the same time.

Brittany felt herself convulse, the first sign of an approaching orgasm, but she didn't want to come just yet.  
The blonde quickly pulled out Santana's fingers and she almost regretted it at the empty feeling and the confused and almost nervous look on Santana's face.

"Did I... was it not good enough? I thought you were close... I felt you... I've never not been able to... Oh God, don't tell me I was a bad lay, Britt. Baby, I just want you to feel good. I can improve, I promise. But I really though it felt good, you were making all these delicious noises and... the first time I did good, right? This is so embarrassing..." Santana rambled on nervously. When she really, _really,_ want to make someone else feel good, _of course_ she won't succeed. _Just my luck..._

"Baby, calm down. This..." Brittany said and pointed between herself and the Latina. "This, is the absolutely best thing ever. You just make me feel so special and sexy and horny and you make me feel so good_._ I was so close." the blonde said, sounding incredibly innocent. "But I want to do something first..." she smirked and her eyes... Santana suddenly found it extremely hard to breathe. Those eyes, that lustful and love filled stare... _oh God..._

Suddenly Santana was lying on her back and Brittany was straddling her.  
The blonde had acted quickly, turning both of them around, making the roles reversed.

"_Again_?" She was making a reference to how Brittany was topping her the first time as well. Santana let out a soft moan as she felt Brittany's wetness rub against her tanned legs.

Brittany let her tongue trail up along Santana's body. Her hands had already found it's way up to erected nipples. She kept tweaking and rolling them between her fingers as she moved her tongue over toned stomach, stopping to suck lightly on those amazing abs.  
The Latina was shivering.

Brittany continued moving up further until she reached the Latina's perfectly shaped breasts. She sucked on those delicious looking nipples. First the right one. She swirled with her tongue, grazing her teeth over the hard nub as she pinched and rolled the other with her fingers, before giving the other the same treatment.

The next stop was Santana's neck. It was as if the neck screamed for her '_Suck me, kiss me, bite me..._', so she did.  
She sucked and she kissed and she left bite marks until Santana dragged her head away from her neck.  
Staring, completely enthralled, into Brittany's eyes.

The next second their lips were locked and Brittany was grinding again Santana, rubbing her thigh against the smaller woman's clit, as she herself got pleasured from rubbing against the Latina's thigh. Brittany still missed the feeling of being filled, but that could surely wait as she was having the most beautiful woman _ever_ underneath her.

"I need to feel you..." Brittany whispered seductively and suddenly Brittany's stomach tightened and they were in a sitting position.

Brittany's confidence in bed was a major turn on to the Latina who usually prefered being the one on top.  
She wouldn't admit it vocally, but she was sure that Brittany noticed anyway, based on the wetness pooling between her legs as Brittany's slowly moved her leg. Her eyes were rolling in the back of her head. But the thigh was... it was moving away from her wetness!

"Wh-what are you doing?" Santana opened her eyes and almost looked distressed.

"I'm switching position, sorry." Brittany said as she bit her lip, she was clearly very concentrated at the task.

It didn't take too long until they were in the position that Brittany wanted them to be in.  
It was almost like how they started.  
Santana was now on top again, but Brittany was the one in control. Tanned legs were wrapped around Brittany's waist.  
Brittany thought it was time for some pleasing again.  
She snaked her hand between their bodies. It was a tight fit since their were super close, but she got it in between them.  
Her fingertips met Santana's wetness, her finger ran through the wet slit and Santana was a shivering mess above her, almost humping the air.  
Not until now did she realize how much she craved to have Brittany inside of her. Before Brittany took all the control, she only had one thing in mind, that was to please Brittany with everything she got.  
But now was different. Brittany was so sexy and teasing and _ohhh_...

"Mhm..."

"Yeah..." Brittany whispered as she kissed Santana's neck.

"You feel so good inside of me..." her eyes had fluttered close a long time ago.

"You feel so good... tight around my fingers..."

Brittany moved her hand.  
The fingers going in and out. Faster... faster... harder... harder...  
The biting and sucking, the nails scraping her back, leaving marks that would stay for days, the rough pumping in and out of her. It just wasn't enough...

Santana clinged to Brittany's body, sweat making them stick together. Santana hugged tightly as she moved her hands everywhere and nowhere, not sure where to put them now when they were so close. She finally decided to just put one on Brittany's upper back and the other tangled in blonde locks, pushing Brittany's head closer to her heaving chest.  
From this position she couldn't do much more than to sit back and enjoy the ride of her life. She tossed her head back as her body shivered in pleasure.

She tried to move herself up and down to meet those slender fingers, to let them dig deeper inside of her. But the two fingers weren't enough to fill her need. She desperately wanted, needed, more friction.

It was as if Brittany could read her mind, or at least read the desperate noises she let out, when Santana felt a third finger slide into the wet heat, earning a loud howl from the Latina who surely was close to heaven by now.

"You like that, huh?" Brittany husked, right below her ear, before she went back to sucking on the Latina's nipples again.

"Yes, yes..." Santana shouted on top of Brittany, arching her back as the blonde kept hitting _that _spot. "So good... right there... mhm... I love you..."

"I love you, Santana."

After a while the brunette made her girlfriend look up at her, Santana's full lips crashed down against Brittany's thin one's in the most passionate kiss they had ever shared. They kept deepening it until neither of them could breathe.

Brittany moved slightly, making a bigger space in between their bodies.  
Santana saw the opportunity and moved quickly. She snaked her hand in between them, grazing Brittany's wet lips with her gentle fingers as Brittany was caught by surprise when two fingers entered her.

They worked up a steady pace, matching each of their thrusts.  
Their lips moved together, slowly. The sight itself was very erotic.  
It wasn't frantic anymore, they didn't battle for dominance. They just wanted their love for the other to show through completely.

Their eyes opened at the same time and their gazes met. They entered an intense staring contest that neither of them wanted to lose.  
They both wore that dazed and lusty look, but the love was shining right through.  
It was almost too much to handle.

Brittany felt Santana's walls clamp down around her fingers, indicating that Santana was close. The blonde loved the feeling of being inside the Latina. Santana gripping her fingers from the inside. If Brittany could choose, she never wanted it to stop.  
However, she knew that she had to make Santana fall over the edge soon, if she would stop completely, she was pretty sure that the Latina would go all Lima Heights Adjacent on her sorry ass. But Santana was lucky that Brittany didn't want to stop.  
The blonde was also close to her release and this time she wasn't going to stop...

"Oh, oh... baby... Britt... I'm... I think... ungh..."

Brittany teased and stilled her hand completely. Santana grunted in annoyance, as she kept massaging Brittany's tightening inside.

"Please, Britt. Please. I'm so close... please..."

She began moving her fingers again, but in a much slower pace. However, Brittany surprised Santana by flicking her thumb over the Latina's sensitive clit...

"Hngh... bloody he... fuck... Britt... Brittany!" Santana shouted on top of her lungs as she came undone, her inside tightening and holding Brittany's fingers still inside of her, making it impossible for the blonde to pull out or move, not that she wanted to.

Santana's face in that moment was possibly the hottest thing that Brittany had ever seen.  
Her face was contorted in pleasure, her eyes were shut and her mouth hanging open as she let out puffs of air, mixed with soft moans.

A few seconds after Santana coming, the Latina curled her fingers perfectly inside of Brittany. It was just a reaction from Brittany hitting a nerve, but the curl of those finger hit a spot inside of Brittany that no one had ever touched before, on top of that, she accidentally brushed against Brittany's clit at the same time.  
Brittany's orgasm came crashing down over her as she let out her lovers name. Together, they were riding out their waves of pleasure.  
Brittany struggled to keep her eyes open, but she did it. She didn't want to miss a single second of seeing Santana in this state.  
Santana urged Brittany to keep rubbing her thumb in circles against her clit, while Brittany kept rocking down on Santana's hand until neither of them could handle anymore.

With walls still convulsing and bodies shuddering they fell down on the mattress, a wet, panting and giggling mess.

XXXX

"Oh my God..." Brittany giggled as she licked her own, and Santana's, fingers clean, tasting Santana and herself. "Mhm, you taste so good... and who would've known that you were such a screamer and moaner?"

"That was..." Santana began in a ragged whisper as she smiled lazily, leaving soft kisses along Brittany's jaw. Ignoring the fact that yes, she was a screamer during sex... and a moaner.

"Amazing." Brittany filled in. "You're amazing." she said coyly as she turned around, staring intently at Santana while the Latina was caressing her cheek.

"I love you." Santana pressed her lips against Brittany's, her tongue swiping against soft lips, recognizing the tangy taste as her and Brittany combined.

"I love you." Brittany said back, completely out of breath from the kissing and the not so innocent things she had done just moments ago.

"Mhm, I don't know how I did it, my whole life without you... what was life before you... I don't even remember..." the brunette said as she stared into deep blue eyes.

"If you want to, you'll have me for the rest of your life." Brittany said, biting her lip nervously, hoping that she didn't say too much.

"Maybe I'll have to take up on that offer, my princess." Santana winked, causing Brittany to giggle.

"I like the sound of that, my beautiful, sexy, irresistible knight." Brittany played along.

"Irresistible, huh?"

"Yep."

"Want to go again?" Santana said hopefully.

"Well, when you put it so _romantic_, how could I say no?"

This caused Santana to burst out laughing.

Okay, so maybe it didn't come out as romantic as she thought it would.

"Okay, so I haven't had sex in mooonths. Do you know how big of a deal that is to me? So can you blame me for wanting to please my super hot girlfriend sexually now? Nope, didn't think so!"

"You haven't had sex for months?" Brittany said, sounding very surprised.

"No, well, I _tried_. But you know, nothing kind of... worked? So I told them to get off of me, and then I just left them there." Santana blushed. She didn't want Brittany to think that she was mean. "Just so you know, I will never leave you. Never. You're stuck with me. With those girls, I guess that I kind of knew that nothing would be as good without feelings. Without _you_. Wait... what? You had sex with others?" Santana's soft features quickly turned into a scowl.

"No, I couldn't. Well, _we_ tried it, but I wasn't really there. I just imagined you..." Brittany said, her cheeks turning a shade of pink at the confession. "Sooo... how long has it been, since, you know? Before today, that is." the blonde tried to turn the topic away from her.

"Mhm, that's kind of hot." Santana whispered, imagining Brittany imagine her while someone else pleased the blonde. _No-no._ She didn't want anyone else but her to please her girlfriend. She didn't let her thoughts linger there for much longer. "Maybe," the Latina continued, she started to think back when she realized that she wouldn't be able to have proper sex with a person that wasn't Brittany. "Six months, maybe more." she didn't even think before the number was out. "Six months!" she shouted as she realized what she had said, her eyes bulging out at the number that even surprised her.

"My granny got more action than you did!" Brittany teased.

"Very funny! Ha-ha!" Santana said sarcastically. "I did it for you, you know." she turned serious.

"I know. But I wouldn't have put it against you if you would've had sex with someone else. But the fact that you didn't..." Brittany bit her lip.

"What?" the Latina said expectantly as Brittany didn't say anything else.

"It really shows how devoted you are. For us. And that, that shows that you're the best girlfriend in the world, even though you weren't my girlfriend back then."

"Mhm, I love when you say that."

"What? Girlfriend?"

"Uh-huh..."

"Well, you are _my_ _girlfriend_. And I'm all yours."

"Mhm, _mine_..." Santana smirked before her lips attached to Brittany's neck, beginning to suck.

"No! No! Santana! I'm modeling in two days, my makeup artist will not approve of any hickeys! No!" Brittany pushed Santana so her lips detached with a loud _pop_. She loved it when Santana kissed her and everything. But Emma would so not like to cover up a bruised neck.

"Whoops... too late!" the Latina said innocently as she looked down at her handiwork.

"Santana!" Brittany shouted and slapped her girlfriend playfully on the arm.

"You love it though. Knowing how I'm marking you, making people know that you're taken. Making _you_ know that you're all mine."

Santana was right. She loved knowing that Santana was hers. If not for the hickeys on her neck, the ring on her finger told her that. Maybe now wasn't the time to start showing off her girlfriend, but soon, she was sure that she would be able to do so. And proudly so.

"Mhm, you know me too well..." she whispered as Santana once again had her lips pressed against her bruised neck.

"No, honey. I can't wait to get to know you better." Santana looked up from Brittany's neck.

"You're right. I can't wait to get to know you better either..."

Well, I'm finally starting to be able to talk about my feelings and I want to be honest with you..."

"Uh-huh?" Brittany said nervously.

"I know it's not ideal talk and first date material and I really hope it's not too much for you. I don't want to scare you... but I can _really_ see a future with you. One day, Britt. One day I _know_ that I'll want to marry you and have everything with you."

"Uh-huh?" Brittany said again, this time her eyes gleamed with happiness.

"Yeah, but I mean, if you wouldn't want to, then I understand that too. And I would give up kids and everything just to have _you_. You're still young and all..." the brunette said. "I'm sorry, I know, I know. It's too early to talk about this. I just wanted to give you a heads up." Santana added as she ran her fingers through her hair.

"I would never give up kids to be with someone." Brittany said seriously and she watched Santana tried to hide the sadness after those words. "That's why I'm happy to hear that you might want kids one day. And one day, I might want to marry you too. Just a heads up." Brittany winked.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I also know it's too early. But one day."

"One day."

"Mhm... I can almost imagine you in a white dress already." Brittany smiled dreamily.

"And what if I would wear a suit? I'm totally a power lesbian."

"Nope, I wouldn't allow that. We're equals. So if you'd wear a suit I would too."

"What! No! You're going to wear a beautiful white dress! Britt!"

"Besides, I don't know about power lesbian. You were totally begging for my touch just moment ago..." Brittany teased, ignoring Santana's white dress request.

"Oh, shut up. You loved it."

"Told ya', you know me all too well."

"Yeah, well, now I just want to make some sweet love to my girlfriend again." Santana huffed, looking all kinds of adorable in Brittany's eyes. "Want to know why? Because I love her. I love _you_ so much. And. I want her to beg for my touch this time."

"Yeah?" Brittany grinned, loving every time Santana said those three words, even though her actions spoke louder. "Make love to me."

"Will do, my princess."

* * *

They were eager to explore each other's bodies in a way that they never had before and that night they were keeping themselves awake late, knowing that neither of them had work the next day.  
Santana learned that Brittany could be dirty. The innocent always are, but it was still a nice surprise that her girlfriend was not minding some spanking and dirty words, which Santana, to her surprise, got returned.  
The blonde had also said that she was sad that they were sleeping on a mattress, even though sleeping in a blanket castle was super cool, because she was excited to be able to tie Santana's hands to a headboard and make love to her until she couldn't move.  
Like, what? Santana's jaw had literally dropped at that. Honestly, she wasn't one to be a bottom, but really, everything Brittany did was just _so_ hot.  
Santana made a mental note to get some handcuffs, those with nice fluff around... and maybe some other _things_ as well, she was sure that Brittany would like.  
But tonight, she was more than content with the love making on the mattress, which still was as thrilling and new as being tied down. The Latina was sure that with Brittany, everything would feel exciting and new.

* * *

"I'm so sticky..." the blonde giggled as she moved her thighs together.

"I think I can help you with that..." Santana smirked before hovering over her now blushing girlfriend.

After all the things they had done that night, a little cleaning up was in order.

Why Brittany blushed at that sentence Santana did not know. They had possibly said and done far non-innocent things that night. Maybe it was just the fact that they were taking their intimacy to a whole other level...

* * *

"Best. Date. Ever." Brittany sniggered sleepily as Santana came up from between her legs. She was licking her lips to savour the taste of Santana on her lips.

"Definitely." Santana mumbled before snuggling closer to Brittany's warm body. Sharing a few lazy kisses, having a taste of herself lingering on her blonde's lips.

"I can't believe that Rachel haven't called yet. It would've been fun if she would've called while you were riding..."

"What! No!" Santana shouted and her eyes almost popped out.

"I'm just kidding, babe."

Santana's body had been aching after the early morning run, fun time at the playground and running after wild animals at the animal shelter. But now all that was gone. She was relaxed and happier than she had ever been. Maybe it was the mind blowing orgasms or the the taste of her _girlfriend _still lingering in her mouth...  
Maybe it had to do something with that. But foremost, she was happy and relaxed because she got Brittany Susan Pierce lying naked next to her, looking at her in a way that no one had ever looked at her, as if she mattered, as if she was more important than anything else... she felt loved and she was happy to be able to say that she loved that woman right back. She knew that she looked at Brittany the same way that the blonde was looking at her, because Brittany was the only thing that mattered and she was more important than anything else.  
With as much love she was given from her partner, she gave right back.

Both women quickly fell asleep after having a moment of sweet nonsense whispered to each other.  
Content snoring soon filled the castle, inhabited by a knight and a princess the two madly in love with each other.

* * *

Santana had only been asleep for a little while when she woke up by a loud knock on the door.  
She was going to ignore it, watching at Brittany sleeping contently next to her, their naked bodies intertwined.  
But then she heard the person out there shout that it was the cops. The voice spoke with such authority that she couldn't deny it and ignore the late intruder... or was it early? She wasn't sure...

She untangled herself carefully. Smiling as she saw the blonde stirring in her sleep, trying to reach for Santana in her sleep. Not finding anything else but air, Brittany grabbed Santana's pillow and inhaled deeply, a content smile appearing and a content sigh being heard.  
Santana quickly pulled on the shirt she had worn earlier, as well as her ruined underwear, which clinged to her body uncomfortably.

She hurried upstairs.

"Hello ma'am, I'm Officer John Walker. We got a call from one of the neighbors about shouting and loud noises coming from this house about an hour ago. Apparently it sounded like someone was in pain. Do you know anything about that?"

"Oh..."

"Ma'am?"

_Whoops..._

* * *

A/N: THE END!

Nahh... just kidding.

But I'm not entirely sure what will happen in the next chapter... hahaha!

This however, was a long ass chapter... it's about 6000 words longer than the second longest one!  
It's a lot of things to take in, I'm sorry! I hope it wasn't too "jumpy". I think it might be obvious what parts I wrote while being tired.

Also, I guess that this is the first time that I've actually written sexy times? Don't kill me if it was bad! I hope it had a good climax point. haha!  
Also, I laugh every time I read or write "sexy times", like those two words, not actually... yeah, you get what I mean.

Actuallyyyy... the part where Brittany writes on the bridge... a friend of mine's boyfriend actually wrote on the Brooklyn Bridge! Totally stole that from them...

Können Sie mich verstehen? - Can you understand me, in German.  
Vad var det jag sa. - Told you so, in Swedish.  
Ik hou van jou - I love you, in Dutch.  
Te quiero. - I love you, in Spanish.  
Jeg er så forelsket i deg - I'm so in love with you, in Norwegian.

Until next time!


	20. Tell People?

A/N: Soooo sorry for taking so long to update!  
I've actually been quite busy lately, with lots of things going on, I haven't been too inspired to write on this either, but it's coming back and I will finish this. Pinky pwomiwse!  
I did start another fic, which y'all should check out! It's called "The Summer of A Lifetime". I guess it's another one of those fate/serendipity stories, kind of like this one. With Brittana and friends traveling around Europe.

I guess I was hoping for better response on the last chapter as well? idk... maybe it was too long and people got scared away by the amount of letters in it?  
But I'm really grateful for all of you who's reading and reviewing.  
Almost 37000 views, 78 reviews, 96 favs and 187 followers! That's pretty insane!  
I have never ever written a story, essay... or anything, that's been this long, and especially not in English.

**snixxjuice214:** I'm glad that you liked it! Sorry for not updating sooner!  
You always come up with the best ideas! I might use that one for a later chapter! (;

**WhatIsWrongWithYou:**I'm glad you liked it, even though it was super long!

**ttandme69:**What was whoops? You didn't get the cop thing? :( To make it clearer, it was obviously that that Santana and Brittany were sexing it up a little too loud in the basement! haha!

**vikstar80:**Yeah, you go on and blush! Haha! Katie got that Irish charm, indeed. So yummy!

**twinklepanda2:** Yep, filming is coming in the next chapter! (:

Anyway. Here's chapter 20. (wow! 20 already?!)  
It's a filler one. Sorry about that, but the next one after this will probably be the beginning of filming FLE!  
Some drama when Artie comes back? Oh, what do I know...

* * *

**CHAPTER 20**

"Hi Brittany, ready for today's photo shoot?" Emma greeted her as she entered the cosy make up room.

"Yes! I'm pumped! It's feels like it was ages ago since I did the last one, even if it was just two weeks ago."

"Yes, but now, let's get going! Take your seat and I'll begin with the usual."

"Great!" Brittany said as she sat down in the comfortable chair in front of the mirror.

"Sweetie, why are you wearing a turtleneck? It's so wa..."

Brittany was pulling down the fabric around her neck since it was itching, one of the many reasons she didn't actually like turtlenecks, but they could come in handy, sometimes. Like, when your neck is all purple and red from your girlfriend sucking a little too hard.

"Oh..." she mumbled as she realized that her makeup artist must have seen the bruises covering her neck.

"What have you..."

"Yeah, about that. Do you think it's possible to cover..." Brittany said as she put her palm over the bruises.

"What is this Brittany!" Emma exclaimed as she grabbed the blonde's hand to examine it.

"Oh..." Brittany blushed as she remembered two days ago and yesterday. It had been so amazing, just being with Santana, her girlfriend. Cuddling, kissing and doing everything else that couples do.

And being called up by the cops in the middle of the night because you're having sex with your girlfriend? That's surely a once in a life kind of thing... or maybe not?

And now Emma was inspecting her hand, or a certain finger with a ring on. Just thinking about when Santana asked her to become her girlfriend made her giddy.

"It's a very nice ring." Emma smiled at the model. "But it doesn't look like an engagement ring?"

"No, it's a promise ring." Brittany said happily, now thinking of when Santana had slipped the ring onto her. Maybe one day she would get an engagement ring, or give one to Santana...

"That's very cute! Who's the lucky person? Are you still dating Artie?"

"Oh, no, no. It's not Artie. He would never do something like this anyway. I trust you to not tell anyone this, but we broke up quite a while ago actually..."

"I'm so sorry to hear that! If it's any help, I never liked that boy." Emma said and shook her head. She always found the designer incredibly annoying and ungrateful.

Brittany quickly changed out of her turtleneck and put on a tank top instead.

"Don't be sorry. I think it was over long before I made it official to him that we couldn't be together anymore." the blonde shrugged in her seat with her eyes closed as Emma began to apply some mineral powder.

"So, who's the lucky person then? Is it someone I know?" the redhead asked, trying to start a conversation as she worked her way with the brush.

Brittany was somewhat happy that Emma didn't use any gender pronouns. Usually people would just assume a lot of things.

"Oh, maybe. I think you may have met her..."

"So it's a girl then. Let's see if I can guess who it is. Will you give me some clues?"

"You ask and I say yes or no, can't promise anything though!" Brittany smiled.

"Is it a model?"

"No!" Brittany almost shouted.

"Why are you so opposed to dating another model?"

"I don't know, I guess that in some way it would be like competing against them? The one who got the best looks, get the best jobs. You know that I love modeling, Emma. But sometimes it's really tough to stay true to yourself and not to fall for the dark side. It's tempting sometimes."

"Oh, sweetie. I know what you mean. I have seen all too many girls taking the wrong way when it comes down to it. But I'm really proud of you."

"Thank you, Emma. You're a great friend."

"Well, I'm just doing my job..."

"No, really. I'm glad to have you supporting me."

"Oh, well..." Emma's cheeks matched the color of her hair. "Well, back to questions. For how long have you known her?"

"It feels like I've known her forever..." Brittany said dreamily with her eyes shut as Emma put some eyeshadow on her, a small smile playing on both of their lips.

"That wasn't a proper answer. But I will accept that. So, how did you meet?"

"It's embarrassing really, and a really long story..."

"Oh, tell me! I still got time! You're making me really curious!"

"Okay, I'll tell you. From the beginning?"

"From the beginning, please."

"Okay. So. I guess that it was supposed to be a one-night stand."

"What!"

"I know, I know. I don't seem like one of those people to do that kind of thing. But I knew who she was from the beginning, and I guess that I have had a crush on her for a long time?" Brittany blushed at the thought of crushing on Santana and admitting it out loud. Crushing on Santana was a while ago though. It was so much more now.

"Okay..."

"Anyway. I left her the morning after, but she caught me before I left and she seemed really distressed that I was leaving her. She asked for my name, but I gave her a fake one..."

"Why did you do that?" Emma said with wide eyes, stopping everything she was doing, almost dropping the brush.

"I guess that I wanted to know if she was interested in something more, if we were supposed to be something else I knew that fate would make us meet again..."

"I never knew you were such a firm believer in fate. But since you got that ring on your finger and those marks on your neck, I'm going to assume that you did indeed meet again. How?"

"Oh..."

Brittany was unsure. Would she go for the truth or make up a little lie?

Would she actually say it right out that it was in fact Santana Lopez who had her heart. That they met again when Emma was there with her? Would that make it awkward for them?

She did trust Emma, she was a good friend who would never go behind her back and tell the press about who she's dating. She was sure of it.

But maybe it was the best if she left some details out, and let the redhead figure out the rest...

"We actually met for a photo shoot. It was really weird, because Quinn actually knew her from high school."

"Wow, what a crazy coincidence!"

"Yeah, I was really surprised. The world feels so small at times..."

"Uh-huh..." Emma said, biting her lip in concentration as she applied some eyeliner. "You said that I have met her?"

"Yeah..."

"And she's not a model?"

"No..."

"You do know that we only ever meet for photo shoots and runway shows?"

"I am aware of that, yes."

"That's why this mysterious girl must be in the fashion industry..."

"Maybe..."

"Oh my! It's not that horrible photographer, what's her name..."

Brittany held her breath. Santana wasn't horrible. But she knew that some people probably found her intimidating based on what they had read about her. Brittany knew how much Santana hated people who judged her...  
What would she do if Emma thought that Santana was horrible?

"Oh, Rosa, is it? I hope it's not that Rosa person we worked with a couple of weeks ago..."

"Rosa? She's like fifty years old!"

"Oh, but age is just a number, honey. You never know!"

"Definitely not Rosa." Brittany said and did some gagging noises, remembering the look of the gray haired photographer with an incredibly bitter personality.  
Thinking of it, Brittany was sure that Rosa must have some serious baggage behind her, because no one could end up like that without haunting memories or _something_.

"Good..."

"Are you ladies ready soon?" the photographer of the day said as he peeked inside the makeup room. Luckily today would only be head shots...

"Yes, I'm done with Brittany in a minute."

"Thank you, Emma. And you can come out here when you are done." the photographer said and turned to face Brittany before disappearing back into the studio.

"Where were we... yes, I still don't know who this mysterious lady is! Will you please give me some hints?"

"Well, she's beautiful, sexy, hot, cute, creative, caring... she got these dimples... long beautiful raven hair, she's really fierce... and her body..." Brittany said and hummed in delight as she imagined Santana's naked body in front of her.

"Okay, okay..." Emma said and nodded. She may have an idea of who this girl might be.

If her guess was correct, she wasn't sure what to think out of it. Sure, the woman had a reputation and she cared for her friend. She would lie if she said that she hadn't been a little intimidated by her, but deep down she was sure that she was a lovely person.  
Besides, she had never seen Brittany this happy before, thus she couldn't care less who the person was as long as they made each other happy. "I think we're ready..."

Brittany opened her eyes with a smile on her lips. She examined Emma's work and nodded in approval.

Emma had once again done an exceptional work.  
Brittany thanked her friend and headed for the door that would lead towards the studio.  
Before stepping through, she turned around and called for her friend...

"It's Santana..." Brittany said. Somehow it felt like Emma already knew, as if she had seen right through her all the time. It was time to be honest with her friends, they deserved the truth.

Emma just smiled brightly at the young model.  
She knew it, she had sensed it. She was happy for her friend that she had found someone to love and feel loved by and she was sure that Santana would do anything in her power to make Brittany happy.  
Emma wasn't stupid. She had seen the way the two of them acted around each other when they all had met for that one photo shoot months ago.  
She had sensed it back then as well.  
The redhead smiled knowingly as she cleaned the brushes and put them back in the cases.  
Her job was done, and not only the make up job.  
Maybe she was a good friend, after all...

* * *

"Rachel! Are you home?" Santana shouted. She could hear shuffling from upstairs.

"Up here!" Rachel's voice echoed through the apartment.

"We need to talk!"

"Hold on a minute! I'll come down!"

Two minutes later Santana and Rachel were seated on their couch.

"So, how did the date go?"

They hadn't seen each other since before the date. Santana and Brittany had stayed in the studio house all day long, just being around with each other, enjoying each other's company.

"It was amazing. It was actually that I wanted to talk to you about..."

"Go on, Rachel is always listening."

"Okay, first of all. Never speak of yourself in third persona ever again. You're hanging out with Fabray way too much."

"Oh, you're just jealous because you haven't dared to ask her the question yet."

Awkward silence filled the room. Santana knew what question Berry was talking about. The "do you want to be my girlfriend"-question.

"You did it! You actually did it?" Rachel exclaimed, taking the moment of silence as her answer.

"Yeah, I did it." Santana said bashfully, not meeting Rachel's curious eyes.

"So?"

"So what?"

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"Of course she is! What person would ever say no to this!" Santana said cockily. Deep down she felt a lot of gratitude. She knew that there had been a chance that Brittany could've said no to her, and if that scenario would've happened, she's not sure what she would've done. Luckily it didn't happen, and Brittany said yes. The cockiness was just a part of her act, a part of a much softer person.

"You know that you don't need to pretend to be all cocky around me, don't you?" Rachel said amusedly.

"Yeah, I know..." Santana smiled.

"So, tell me about what happened?"

So she did. Santana told her the story of the day's event. On how they went out jogging in the early morning, how Brittany had done illegal things for her. Sow she had been the prince in shining armor, protecting her girl from stupid mother's. How they met Joanne, Laura and Dani. When they went to the animal shelter. Of course she didn't tell Berry that she was scared of guinea pigs, because duhh, she wasn't scared of them.  
She told her the story of the romantic dinner and how Mike, Tina and Dave had done a great job with getting the Italian vibe to it. Lastly she told her roommate about the fort they built.  
She told her how she asked Brittany to be her girlfriend, how she had gotten the perfect ring as a promise. How it felt so right to just be with Brittany and how she could picture a future together with her.  
She might have left some details about the night, but Rachel didn't need to know everything about her sex life, if the brunette wanted to be a pervert she could imagine things herself.

* * *

Brittany hurried home to Santana's after her day in the studio.  
She had missed the smell and touch of her girlfriend, only longing for it the whole day.  
The moment she got the door open and inhaled the smell of her girlfriend's apartment she felt safe and home. Santana was her home.  
Tonight there was also something that she needed to discuss with Santana.  
Telling people.  
She knew that Santana was open about her sexuality and if they would decide to hide it in the meantime, it would be because of her own career and not because of the photographer's.  
However, she had already begun telling people about them as a couple.  
Emma knew and Quinn knew. Those were her friends, of course they should know.  
But what about the rest?

* * *

"Baby..."

"Uh-huh..." Santana nuzzled into Brittany's neck, inhaling the sweet smell of her girlfriend. She had missed it all day long.

"We need to talk."

This had Santana sitting straight up in mere seconds. '_We need to talk_', never meant anything good.

But it couldn't be that bad, could it? Their relationship had just begun...

"What do you think about telling people? About us?"

It was definitely not what Santana had expected to come out of her girlfriend's mouth. But something that was important for both of them.

"Honestly? I don't care who knows as long as you're happy. But I mean, we don't need to flaunt it to everyone. I'm proud to be yours and I wouldn't mind showing off that I got the hottest girlfriend of them all. But I understand that this is all new to you..."

"I agree. Maybe we don't need to rub it in everyone's faces, because, you know. I totally got the hottest girlfriend and that would definitely make people jealous, but if people would ask, we wouldn't deny it? I've already told Quinn and Emma about us. I should probably call my parents..."

"You got the hottest girlfriend? Are you cheating on her with me?" Santana teased, Brittany booping her nose.

"Mhm, my girlfriend would make anyone jealous..."

"If you say so..." Santana smiled and put a strand of hair behind Brittany's ear. "And if that's what you want, only telling our friends about us. Then I'm happy about it, because I know that I got you."

"You got me and one day I know that I will want to rub my hot girlfriend in people's faces..." Brittany said, causing Santana to burst out laughing. "Oh, not like actually rub you in people's faces, because the only face you will ever get to rub against is mine..." Brittany said mischievously with a smirk.

"I don't mind that..." Santana said and leaned in to capture soft lips between her own.

"I can't believe how I got so lucky."

* * *

Something that evening caught Santana's attention as she watched her twitter.  
A DM from one Britney. With a raised eyebrow she felt the urge to reply, and so she did...

_**BritneySpears** Stop flirting with me, before I go LHA on you! (Sorry, don't know how to reply on DM's...) You got no chance on me. It's Santana. Bitch._


	21. Under Influence

**A/N:** What are your thoughts on Glee S4? The new characters? KITTANY?!  
I must say that this season seems really promising, at least for now, with the Brittany episode coming up! So excited!

For this chapter... all I'm gonna say is... Artie is back in town! Uh-oh!

**Rs:**I'm glad you liked it! Enjoy this one as well! I hope everything is good with you in Argentina! :)

**sheashoeaddict:** Yeah, I'm always imagining Britt-Britt as the dominant one! And Santana really is a softy on the inside, isn't she...

**snixxjuice214:** I'm glad you liked the twitter part! I guess it would've been more suiting with "It's Brittany bitch!", but well, well...  
Thanks for always reviewing! :)

**Dolfenluvr:** You could've used more, eh? ;) Enjoy this one!

**Glee4ever123:**I promise you that that is coming!

**dafuq33:**Haha, thank you! I'm really glad that you liked them! Here's the update!

**p4tr1c14:**It was the best part, right? (;

**naynay1963:** You're funny!  
I'm glad you like the alphabet thing I was actually thinking X, as in a scissor... if you know what I mean! (;

* * *

**Chapter 21**

It was finally summer, and the first day on set for the second season of Fashion Lies Everywhere was coming closer. Tomorrow was the day.  
Santana was nervous to say the least. She had never done anything like this before. She didn't mind being in front of the camera, but being behind it was who she really was.  
It was a whole new experience to have someone follow her throughout her days, and not only Santana, but some of the people from the prior season had been replaced with new talents, just waiting to get into the spotlight.  
Not only that. But her and Brittany knew that keeping their relationship "under the radar" was coming to an end.  
They had successfully, without even trying, avoided the media's prying eyes for the last couple of months.  
Santana or Brittany didn't know why they had been able to be out in public without stalking paparazzi's, but something told them that Jacob Ben Israel was too scared to send out his troops at them. Perhaps after eating those rocky mountain oysters that Santana had sent all those months ago.

All of their close friends who had their trust, as well as their families knew about the two of them being a couple, of course.  
Maribel Lopez had been in tears as her daughter introduced Brittany as her girlfriend as they came for a visit at the Lopez mansion a few weeks prior.  
That's exactly how Santana felt, so happy that she almost cried out in happiness. Brittany made her feel vulnerable in the most frightening way, but at the same time it felt so right.

* * *

"Babe, can you tell me how it worked last season? I know you already told me, but I just don't want to feel like a complete beginner when it comes to this..."

"But you are! I were all new to this last season, and you won't be alone this season either. Also. Even Rob told you how it would work! You didn't listen then, did you?" Brittany teased with a raised eyebrow.

"Who's Rob?"

"Santana. Robert. The _producer_, remember? We met him like, two days ago."

"Oh, yeah. Robert. Why didn't you just say so..."

"Okay, anyway. So this is going to be a little different from the first season because we haven't taken the promo photos yet, so that's what's going to happen tomorrow."

"I remember now, that's why we went to Robert, the producer, because we wanted our promo shots to be taken together."

"Yes, exactly. Rob, Quinn and Rob's new assistants are the only one's who know about us being together right now, but everyone will surely be getting it as soon as we all meet up tomorrow."

"I don't mind." Santana said and linked her hand through Brittany's.

"Me neither." the blonde said and kissed Santana's cheek.

"You know that _he_ will realize as well?"

"Yes, he will most likely be there and he will probably realize that we are a lot more than friends..."

"And?" Santana bit her lip nervously, not sure what answer she should expect. Working with an ex and new partner at the same time was always doomed to be a disaster.

"Honestly? I guess that it should bother me more than it actually does. But it doesn't and that's disturbing? I can with all honesty say that I don't care about his opinion about us. I guess that it was sad that I lost a friend when we broke up, but that's life." Brittany said and shrugged with a sad face. "It will probably be awkward, but I don't think we will work that close this season anyway." the model said and watched as Santana looked around nervously. "Does it bother you to work with him? That I will work with him?" the blonde said, which made Santana lock eyes with her.

"He hurt you, Brittany." Santana let out in a low voice.

"And you were there to pick up the pieces, to pick me up."

"But it hurts me to know how he treated you. You didn't deserve it."

"No one deserves it. Everyone deserves to feel loved, and that's exactly how I feel right now."

"If he so much as touches you, or even look your way, I swear..."

"Yeah, you'll go all Lima Heights Adjacent on his sorry ass. And I'm sure that you'll slash him with your vicious, vicious words." Brittany said and giggled. "Unless I do it first!"

"Oh, no way is my lady going to do anything!"

"We'll see about that!" Brittany teased. "Anyway..."

"Promo photos."

"Yes. We will take both solos and together. Then we will take a couple of photos together with Kurt, Quinn and Rachel, since they are like, our people. Then group shots with everyone."

"That sounds cool."

"Yeah? And in the meantime, everyone will get acquainted with each other by playing games and doing different activities! Film some interview material as well!" the blonde said excitedly.

"What kind of games?" Santana said with a raised eyebrow. She had never been a fan of games, especially not those "get to know each other"-games.

"Like, I don't know what we're doing this year. Last year we did a bunch of name games, 'two truths, one lie', you know, you tell three things about yourself and then the other's try to figure out which was the lie. And also..."

"I know that game and it's ridiculous."

"No, it's fun!"

"It's ridiculous. If they want to know something about me they can google it."

"And how much truth would lie in the answers they would get from online?"

"Well, if they use the 'I'm feeling lucky'-button, they might just get the truth!"

"Yeah, or maybe not?" Brittany snorted.

"Okay, okay. Fine. Internet got so much bullshit. But I still think getting to know games sounds ridiculous. We're not in middle school anymore."

"I'm sure that you'll think it's fun!"

"As if..."

"Mhm, maybe I can sneak in some sweet lady kisses in between?" Brittany said seductively as she trailed her free hand up Santana's leg and thigh.

"I like the sound of that..."

"Uh-huh..."

"Come here..." Santana said seductively as she leaned in to kiss Brittany.

"We're going up early tomorrow though... stop it... San..." Brittany giggled as Santana began to suck on her pulse point.

"Yeah? So?"

"No marks, Santana! Important photo shoot tomorrow!"

"Fine, fine. No marks..." Santana huffed. She loved hickeys! Especially making them on Brittany, but fine. She too, had an important photo shoot tomorrow...

* * *

"Wakey, wakey!"

"Uhhghh..." Santana groaned as she rolled away from Brittany who was jumping in the bed. Yes, Brittany was actually jumping in the bed.

"Baby! Get up or else we'll get late!"

"Don't wanna..." Santana mumbled into the pillow. The Latina was finally realizing that sexing it up with Brittany until late last night might have not been a very clever idea.

"Get up! I'll make you pancakes!" Brittany said as she jumped down from the bed, pecking Santana's cheek before she hurried out of the room and down to the kitchen.

"Sure... wait... what? No, Britt! No! You are not allowed in that kitchen! Come back and cuddle! Wait!" Santana shouted as she hurried up from the bed before running after the fast blonde. "Britt! Don't touch a thing! I'll make you pancakes!"

As Santana got closer to the forbidden room, she smelled something.  
It smelled like... eggs and bacon?  
That made her speed up, Brittany was so not supposed to make her eggs and bacon! That shit was dangerous!

"Britta..." Santana stopped abruptly as she entered the kitchen.

"Hello, Santana. Breakfast is ready." Quinn said as she moved around the bacon in the frying pan, not breaking the eye contact with the salty meat.

"Good morning, Sant..." Rachel began as she looked up from the morning's newspaper. Her eyes bulged out at the sight in front of her.  
She probably got a crumble or something down the wrong throat, because suddenly she began to cough and desperately reach around the table for something to drink.  
This commotion caused Quinn to turn around.

"Oh my... Santana! Cover yourself!" Quinn shouted angrily before leaning over to her girlfriend to make sure that she was okay.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Brittany said as she casually walked into the kitchen. Grabbing a piece of bacon directly from the frying pan. "Hey, why are you choking?" the model said as she sat down next to the singer, waiting for her food to get served by Quinn, who was currently busy taking care of her dying girlfriend.  
Brittany looked around the room and saw Santana in the other doorway. "Hey baby, why are you walking around half naked?". Brittany kept looking at Santana with a raised eyebrow as the Latina tried to cover up her bare chest with her hands.

"Where did you go? I thought you were going to make me pancakes?" Santana asked as she tried to cover herself up.

"Oh, sorry. I know that you don't want me to touch the stove, so I went to pee."

"O-okay. Well, I guess I need to put something on then..."

Santana sent a quick glare to Rachel who had calmed down from the coughing.  
She hurried outside the room and upstairs to her bedroom. She needed clothes. Fast.  
Santana heard Brittany giggling as she left...

_Damn it. Berry just saw my boobs..._

Brittany stayed. Patiently waiting for Quinn to get the food for her, but it never came.  
Seconds passed. Minutes passed and the kitchen was beginning to smell like something was burning. But Quinn was busy making sure that Rachel wouldn't get a cough attack again.  
The blonde model wasn't really allowed to take food directly from the pans, she was lucky that Santana didn't tell her anything earlier...  
But right now it seemed like she wouldn't get any breakfast. At least not in a while and it wasn't like she wanted to eat burnt bacon anyway.  
She sent a quick glare to Quinn who was patting Rachel's back, before she hurried outside the room and upstairs to Santana's bedroom.

_Damn it. I won't get any food from Quinn the whipped, better go and take care of Santana instead..._

* * *

So, fine.  
After arriving to the studio, which looked really cool with couches, air-hockey, pool table and a bunch of other cool stuff in one room and cameras and amazing lighting setup in another, it was time to get down to business. Meaning, start talking to these strangers.

Santana was laughing her ass off as the cast and crew were playing two truths and one lie.  
Some of these lies and truths were just ridiculous and hard to guess.  
Like, 'I met Lady Gaga when I was out shopping for underwear, not only once, but twice. And even though I have lived here for three years and I've never seen the Statue of Liberty up close and whenever I'm home my mum always make my laundry."  
So guess what? Unique had never seen the Statue of Liberty even after living in New York for three years and she have met Lady Gaga twice while shopping for underwear. She even showed pictures as proof! Apparently she barely visits her home, and when she does, she doesn't stay long enough for her mum to take care of her laundry. Who would've guessed that...

The Latina had come to terms that she would enjoy this.  
Even though Quinn, Kurt and Rachel were currently missing from the set, they hadn't showed up yet. She had only seen a little glimpse of Artie until he suddenly disappeared, and that, she was happy for. She had taken her time to really get to know these people that she would work with. She wouldn't necessarily work with them closely, but she would still meet them from time to time, and she really liked these people, well, some of them more than others. But that was natural.  
Santana was proud of herself. She had been acting fairly kind, trying hard not to say anything that would come off as too rude, of course she wouldn't be able to stop all of her rude remarks, but some of them she had managed to filter.

She had met Sam and Sugar before. Sugar was a little rough around to edges, to say the least. The young girl said that she liked Santana's work and found it intriguing, but lacking that little extra.  
Santana really did tame herself there, she didn't want to add any extra drama on the first day, so she kept quiet and was happy that Sugar at least liked her work a little bit.  
Sugar was like a more outspoken Rachel Berry, but luckily for her, their conversation didn't last very long and the rich girl abandoned Santana to occupy herself by flirting away with some guy from the crew.  
Sam however, was really cool. She knew that him and Brittany were really close friends, so she really had to be on Sam's good side, which she found easy. She accidentally called the male model "guppy" and "trouty mouth" a couple of times, but Sam had just brushed it off and laughed at it.  
She could see herself getting along well with Sam, if that was how he'd react whenever she'd call him by a nickname.  
Brittany had been by her side most of the time and to her delight, the two of them were already dubbed as "two-shot" and "Brittana" by the rest of the cast.

* * *

"Have _anyone_ seen Arthur today?" Robert's angry voice shone through the room that was occupied by cast and crew getting acquainted with each other. "He's not answering any calls... where the hell is that boy, it's his turn..." he muttered as he didn't spot the designer in the crowd.

"I saw him earlier. I think he was leaving..." a crew girl piped in.

"Sugar, do you know where he is?" the producer asked as he spotted the youngest of the cast sitting on the floor.

"Why the hell would I know? It's not like I'm his babysitter." Sugar said angrily. "Sorry, Aspergers. I don't know where he is." the brunette said calmly before returning to her conversation with the new PA, some guy from Ireland.

"Can anyone tell me what's going on here. Why isn't he here? I hope he knows that he might lose his job..."

"Rawbeeert! My man!"

"Arthur? What are you doing..." Robert froze in pure surprise as he felt arms wrap around him, the strong smell of alcohol being obvious in the breath being exhaled around him.

"I just went out to run some errands while waiting for my turn." the geeky looking designer slurred before turning around.

"Sugah-sugahhh, you are my honey... ehh... candy gurrrrl..." Artie sang as he saw the girl on the floor. "Hope you're having fun sleeping around with Mr. Irish guy..." he muttered. "Ohh, hi Britt, baby." the designer continued as his eyes landed on the blonde model a few meteres away, staring back at him with wide eyes, she had previously been discussing some new ideas with the director of photography.

The room went silent. None of them expecting the turn of events.  
Soon enough talking filled the room again. Everyone knew that it was all pretend, everyone were eavesdropping while discussing meaningless things that no one really cared about.  
First class gossip was on its way, and no one could afford to miss it.

Meanwhile, Santana was fuming from the couch, seated in the other side of the room, as she looked between her girlfriend and Artie.  
She should've seen something like this coming, and hell no was he going to go all "baby" on her girlfriend. Hell no...  
She pulled up her sleeves and balled her fists, ready to make a move if necessary. But as long as he didn't do anything, she had promised Brittany to not hurt him physically. Obviously, Artie was already emotionally unstable.

"I've missed you." Artie said as he took a step closer to the blonde.

"No..." Brittany whispered and shook her head. Backing towards the wall for every step Artie took.

Soon enough Brittany had backed as far as she could. Her back was pressed up against the wall and Artie was right in front of her, his breath hitting her face and the blonde made disgusting faces. She never liked alcohol, this being one of the many reasons.

_Why the hell is no one stepping in... why is no one doing anything..._ Santana thought as she desperately looked around the room, trying to seek help without uttering a word, and without success. No one could possibly think that they were still together, or could they? Were these people that stupid?

"I've missed your smell..." Artie said as he sniffed the air around them. Brittany couldn't say anything. She was too scared to utter a single word. "I've missed us. Take me back, baby. Please?" he whispered loud enough for Brittany to hear.

Artie begged and Brittany shook her head.  
The room was once again silent and Brittany and Artie had all eyes on them.  
No one dared to do anything.  
The newbies wondered why no one did anything, but didn't want to step in by themselves, while the old crew was used to the odd couple fighting. But this was different...  
They were no longer a couple. Artie was drunk and Brittany was scared.  
They knew what they should've done, but no one did it.  
Not even Robert...

_That's it..._

"Hey! What the hell are you doing?" Santana shouted as she saw Artie linger forward. She could smell the alcohol from where she was standing, now she was getting closer and closer...

"Why do _you_ care?" Artie groaned as he was ready to make his move. "You'll never get to do this to her... hmm...I've missed your lips on mine." Artie leaned in with his eyes closed, his right hand cupping Brittany's face while his left hand was on the wall, making sure that the blonde couldn't move away from him. He puckered his lips and the moment he thought his lips would touch soft one's, he felt nothing but a burning sensation in his head.

"Ahhhh!" Artie shouted in agony, desperately clutching his head to calm down the feeling, it felt like someone had ripped of pieces of hair.

"Don't you fucking dare to ever touch her again. Don't even look her way." Santana said angrily, throwing the hairs she ripped off into the air before beginning to push Artie, who didn't fight back, until he fell onto his ass with a loud thud.

"Fucking hell..." Artie spit, laying on the floor. "Why did you do that?"

"No one else did shit." Santana spit back.

"Fucking lesbian. Disgusting. Bet you're only jealous because I got up on that, and you don't."

"Fucking lesbian? Man, that was a low blow..." Santana said sarcastically. Obviously she knew something he didn't know.

"I've seen the way you look at her." Artie said as he raised up from the floor, brushing his clothes from invisible dust.

"Yeah, and how exactly do I look at her?"

"As if, as if you want her. It's disgusting."

"You disgust me, Arthur. The way you look at Brittany..." Santana shook her head. "As if you own her. But I know, I know that it's over between you two. It's been for a long time." Angry Artie neared the furious Latina, but as Artie was standing right in front of her, she poked his chest, making him back off.

The audience watching the argument from the sides let out different kinds of noises in surprise, before awkwardly clearing their throats, doing their best to cover up their very obvious eavesdropping.

"So, Britt. I guess you told this bitch about our breakup?" he said as he glared at Santana.

"I guess you must have missed the way I look at her." Brittany rolled her eyes and spoke up after being silent for a long time, her voice cracking. No one got to call her girl a bitch. "You're always too busy being so full of yourself. Santana got me already."

"What do you mean by that?" Artie said and glared at Brittany.

Artie was once again approaching the blonde model and this time Santana would protect her girl.  
Santana balled her fists again. Artie was getting closer. She was ready. The alcohol smell was getting closer to their faces. She knew how much Brittany hated that smell. She needed more leverage. He quickly followed after as she took a step back. But BAM!

Santana saw a fist swish right in front of her and the next second Artie was lying on the floor again, desperately clutching his, now, bleeding nose.  
Someone was shouting "man down, man down!", but no one did anything. Everyone just stared in awe.

Santana hadn't done anything. Really. She had just stood there, backing towards the wall to get some leverage.  
She turned her head and gawked at Brittany, who now had everyone's attention, who was currently trying to calm down the burning feeling in her knuckles and the adrenaline pumping in her veins.  
No one had seen that one coming. Miss innocent hitting someone in the face? Artie being beaten by a girl? Two girls? First class gossip right there.

"Don't you ever call my girlfriend a bitch again. Yeah, you heard me." Brittany said loud enough for everyone to hear as she glared down at Artie. "I'm the only one allowed to do that." she said in a lower voice for Santana's ears only, before sending her a wink. Okay, so more gossip coming right up.

"So. Hot." Santana let out in a whisper before quickly closing the gap between herself and Brittany. Their lips desperately moving against each other.

From the floor, without any pride left, Artie was watching as his former girlfriend and Santana Lopez were making out. Tongues and everything! _The_ Santana Lopez. He practically introduced the two of them!  
As if that wasn't enough, the room was soon filled with "aw's" at the kissing couple.  
Just great.  
Artie swiped his nose on his expensive suit and sent the girls an angry glare, before he felt strong arms lift him up.

"Son, I hate to do this to you, but we need to talk about this. Don't ruin your career by following this pattern. Don't. One day you might not get another chance to change for the better. This could be the death of you. You need help." Robert said warningly before giving Santana and Brittany one last apologetical look, which went unnoticed by the girls, before dragging the drunk man with him towards his office.  
He would have to take care of the girls and the rumors that surely would start later. "Oh, and call for medical help." he said randomly to his PA.

Even though Artie was like a son to Robert, he had to keep business away from personal life. He couldn't accept this turnout for Arthur, especially not the way he acted towards Brittany.  
He couldn't say that Brittany punching him in the face was the right thing to do, but he had it coming.  
Maybe Robert should've seen everything coming, that everything would fall apart for his designer friend. With Artie's breakup with Brittany, his economical problem, lack of success when it comes to his company and apparently, trouble in paradise with Sugar.  
Robert was an optimist, trying to see the underlaying good in everyone.  
But for turning up drunk at work, homophobic comments and to sexually harass a co-worker was not acceptable. Therefore, it was only one way to end this journey for Artie...

"Son, I can't let you work with us anymore. I'm breaking the contract. You're free to go, but please take my advice and get some help. I'm sure that the alcohol isn't your only problem..."

"No, sir, it's not." Artie said, the punch making him sober up a little, he was slightly embarrassed to admit that the alcohol wasn't the only problem. He knew that he had problems, a lot of them actually, but he never thought he would take it this far. "I'm really sorry for this mess, believe me, I am. I hope that you can forgive me one day." he said, sounding miserable and regretful. Tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"One day, son. One day." Robert said. "Oh, come here." he pulled Artie in for a fatherly hug until the medics came to check on the man with the bloody nose before they took him with them to the local hospital.

* * *

"Hey guys, sorry for being late. The traffic was crazy and everything was all-around crazy this morning. What did we miss? Where's Rob?" Quinn said out of breath when she turned up on set with Rachel and Kurt close behind, three hours too late.

Most of the people just turned around to greet them with a tightlipped smile or a wave, quickly dismissing them before turning back to what they just did.  
Whispering... at least they thought they were being quiet...

- _Is Santana and Brittany a couple?  
- Obviously.  
- For how long have they been dating?  
- When did Brittany break up with Artie?  
- What the hell is wrong with Artie?  
- Santana is so hot...  
- I wonder if Britt is okay...  
- Well, a friend of mine, who's cousin got a friend, told her friend that her best friend, who's a friend of Brittany... got told by Brittany that she was pregnant.  
- Brittany's pregnant? Doubt it...  
- I heard that Artie's an alcoholic.  
- No shit. I heard that he's a drug addict...  
- What? I heard that Artie got dumped by Sugar too.  
- Seems like it. Look at those two...  
- Artie was dating Sugar too?  
- How awkward is it to work with two ex's...  
- Lucky for him, doesn't seem like he'll work with them...  
- Watch your ladies or else Santana might come and steal them too.  
- Doubt it, she seems very fond of Brittany.  
- I wonder if they have done some naughty photo shoots...  
- Guys, why are we even talking about this? Santana and Brittany are standing right there..._

"Okay, what on Earth did we miss?" Kurt and Quinn shouted in unison. All eyes turned to them.

"Santana!" Rachel shouted, dreading to hear what had happened.

"Oh, hi Quinn. Kurt. Rachel. Didn't see you coming!" Sugar said as the people finally began to take proper notice of the newly arrived friends.

* * *

Exactly like the past couple of nights, before going to bed, Santana and Brittany typed out tweets for the internet world to see.  
It had been a really eventful day, with the Arthur drama, explaining it to their friends, discussing the future with Robert, first day on set, coming out to their new colleagues...  
But just because a lot of things were different from the past days, and things were finally changing, didn't mean it was a bad change.  
Both women were content with the changes, and the evening tweets were still in their routine, for now.  
They took their pictures to attach with their tweets and pressed the "tweet"-button at the same time, before placing their phones on the bedside table and rolling around until they were facing each other... at the same time.

_**TheLopez:**__ Real eventful day... first day on the FLE set! Now: bed with the most beautiful woman alive... I love you. hashtag: BitchesBeJelly_

_**BrittSPierce:**__ I got the best cuddling company! (-: I'm smelling her right now, and she smells so good! I love you too. So much! hashtag: CrazyInLove_

Santana attached a photo of her own and Brittany's hair being sprawled out on a pillow, while Brittany posted a photo of their pinkies linked on top of the blankets they had themselves laying underneath.  
The ring that was holding promises clearly visible on Brittany's picture.

"Do you think people will get it?" Santana asked as she let her girlfriend cuddle closer, her own hands slowly running up and down Brittany's fair skin.

"I hope so. We might need to clarify it one day. Reply to some tweets. Kurt might kill me for not warning him before doing this, but that's alright, because right now I'm just happy to have you." Brittany whispered as she snuggled closer to Santana. Inhaling the sweet smell of her girlfriend and surely enjoying the touch from her.

"Are you smelling me again?" Santana asked, highly amused at her girlfriends antics.

"Yeah..."

"Isn't it a bit creepy that people will know that I smell good?"

"No? I don't think anyone would think that you smell bad anyway..." Brittany said sleepily before yawning.

"I love you, Britt-Britt." Santana said with a bright smile, because not only did she have the most beautiful woman, she had the most amazing and adorable one as well.

"Love you, Santana..." Brittany kissed Santana's neck before her eyes couldn't stay open for any longer. "G'night... mhm... smells so good..."

"Sweet dreams, baby." Santana said and placed a gentle kiss on top of Brittany's head before she contently closed her eyes.

* * *

A/N: So, here's what I'm thinking about the upcoming chapters.  
I'm thinking a short chapter where Brittany and Santana are followed by a camera crew for FLE.  
Then I'm thinking a time jump to hurry the story a little... where that will lead... oh, I have no idea.  
Maybe it's time for the lovey dovey couple to go on a vacation together?


	22. Vital - Epilogue

**A/N: Dear strangers. Are you still there?  
It's been months, I'm sorry.  
But tonight marks the last part of Picture Perfect. I was supposed to write at least three more chapters, but unfortunately the inspiration for this story just, disappeared? But at the same time I wanted to give you all the final piece, the first idea I had, what all the hints were supposed to lead up to.**

**I will write more in the A/N at the end.**  
**But before you start reading I'd like to thank all of you for the support and inspiration throughout the story.**  
**I hope all of you will enjoy this little fluff. Let's call it an epilogue, shall we...**

**_TONIGHT ON THE LAST EPISODE OF PICTURE PERFECT!_**

* * *

**EPILOGUE**

**THREE YEARS LATER**

A year after the season two filming of Fashion Lies Everywhere ended, the two couples decided that it was time to move. Funny, Rachel and Quinn only lived a couple of blocks away from Santana and Brittany.  
Quinn and Rachel's honeymoon phase was still in full force, after years of being together and Santana found it pretty sick to be honest. That however didn't stop Santana from saying sarcastic comments and pulling pranks towards the other couple, even though she noticed that she was starting to lose effect. Rachel or Quinn never mentioned that Santana and Brittany seemed even more lovey-dovey than them.

Rachel quit as Santana's assistant the moment she moved and was now trying to succeed full-time as a Broadway singer. It was easier now and it was going pretty great. Working with one of the most prominent photographers and being together with Quinn, meant that she now knew people who knew people and it was certainly helping her on the way. She was currently preparing herself for a new rendition of 'Funny Girl'. Not that she needed much preparation. She had known every line, every song and every facial expression since the age of one, when her daddy's introduced her to the wonderful Barbra. The brunette's voice was in the best shape it had ever been, and it wasn't like she needed to become a better actress. Rachel was happy with her life finally moving forward, towards the direction she had been dreaming of since a little girl, and with a woman she only could've dreamed of as a teen. Soon enough she was sure that she would become the most famous broadway singer.  
And even if she wouldn't succeed, she knew that she had the best girl and the best friends a failing broadway star could ever ask for.

Quinn on the other hand was still working in television. She was moving up the ladder and was soon becoming an executive producer on a show with lots of potential to become a hit.  
She was successful, everyone on the network looked up to her, even her bosses, who saw themselves in her, even though she was a woman. A powerful one at that, Gorbes kind of powerful, even though she was only at the bottom on that list she still saw it as a great achievement to get on there.  
She had been contemplating going back to the books, to get some kind of degree at law school. But she had decided to wait a couple of years, until she was sure that she could afford to take care of Rachel too. She was such a gentleman, in female shape.  
When she was living in Lima, she had never imagined her life taking this turn. She never thought that she'd ever have a good friend in Santana Lopez again, even if they still were competing and bantering each other. She never imagined that she would want to spend the rest of her life with the woman she used to paint naked all over the school's toilet stalls. But what could she do about that now? She was head over heels in love with the performer and all she wanted was to spend the rest of her life with the woman of her dreams.

Artie was struggling. After filming half season two of Fashion Lies Everywhere he got kicked out because of a secret drug addiction that no one had known about. Since the network had viewers in the age ranging from kids to grandparents, they couldn't allow such behavior, and the gossip magazines were after them like the plague.  
His brand had been a sinking ship, no one was interested in adult underwear with childish prints. Not even unicorn patterns! What had the world come to.  
But he was trying to become a better person. He realized that he had been a douche for the past years. Not giving a damn about anything or anyone except for himself.  
Inspired by 'My Name is Earl' he tried to make up for everything bad he had done in the past. He didn't really believe in karma, just that his old friends might be kind enough to accept his apologies.  
For example, when he heard the news about Sugar breaking up with Rory he sent a sugar cube all the way to Ireland with a note saying "Sorry for keeping you away from Sugar. I'll let you have a piece."  
And when it came to apologizing to Brittany, he bought her candy for thousands of dollars. For all of the times he fed her with his nasty health food. He told her how sorry he was for never listening or caring for her enough. But he also added that he would've proposed again if he got the chance.  
So. Okay. Maybe some people never change.  
He still had a weird obsession with sweet candy and Sugar. But at least he knew what he had done wrong in life, even though he didn't want to completely admit it to himself.  
He did his best to change, and that's what mattered.

* * *

A year after the filming of the second season of Fashion Lies everywhere Santana Lopez, well-known photographer, and Brittany Pierce, supermodel, decided to hit it off and move in together.  
With their joint salary they could afford a huge penthouse. Balcony and private access to the roof. It was also located on the Upper East Side of New York. It was bigger than the duplex that Santana had lived in with Rachel, and that duplex, it had been pretty big, but in comparison to their new crib, the old one had been like a tree house.

Brittany had indeed achieved supermodel status in the matter of a few years. With the traveling schedule that was bound to be a problem for the couple, Brittany became Santana's personal muse and Santana had become her personal photographer.

They were like Lois and Clark, Batman and Robin, Lily and Marshall...  
Whenever someone hired Brittany, they also hired Santana as a photographer. At least if it was a company outside of the New York area where they needed to travel away from each other. Some people would call them clingy, but neither could function properly while away from each other.  
Usually the magazines or brands saw it as a big opportunity to have Santana instead of their own photographers, so they didn't see it as a problem. Santana Lopez was still one of the most prominent photographers on the market. And since she almost exclusively only shot Brittany, they didn't have many options if they wanted her, even though Santana shot other people as well, but not that often.  
Whenever Brittany would do fashion shows, Santana always followed with her together with Kurt as support.  
It had been the best decision for them as a couple, so they didn't need to stay away from each other for more than a couple of days if necessary and they didn't need to travel unless there was a specific environment that was needed for the shoot. But to get paid to travel to the desert in Egypt, to the rainforests in Peru and to kangaroos in Australia with your love? Neither of them thought that they could spend their time better, even though it was for work. They loved work.  
Both Quinn and Rachel thought it was ridiculous that they had to spend every minute together like that. But Brittany and Santana just didn't want to be away from each other, not again.

They had been talking about adopting a baby. Ever since Brittany met Mike and Tina, Santana's ex-ex neighbors, and creative team, Brittany had been going on non-stop on how much she had wanted to adopt a Mike and Tina one day. It had actually been little Laura's idea, mentioning it during one of their many babysitting sessions about a month ago.  
And after all, the Asian couple had been the one to help Santana create that old unicorn head that was now placed in their living room as a memory of the past and Brittany couldn't be more grateful. Because, who knows what would've happened if she wouldn't have fainted that day, maybe she wouldn't have stared into those brown eyes and realized the underlaying feelings she had. Because that day, it had been the one day that definitely made her realize that she was crazy about Santana Lopez.

* * *

**BABYSITTING LITTLE LAURA**

_"Why do I have to do it?"_

_"You look better."_

_"You're the model!"_

_"That's not fair. You could be a model too, if you'd been a little taller."_

_"See! I don't want our kids to get my short genes!"_

_"I think it's cute."_

_"But it's not!"_

_"You're not that much shorter than me."_

_"So?"_

_"I want our kids to be smart."_

_"You are the smartest, Britt."_

_"Liar, liar pants on fire!" Brittany shouted and poked Santana in the stomach._

_"I want our kids to be athletic."_

_"You're athletic too! Have you seen your abs?"_

_"I want them to be flexible."_

_"You... what? Why?"_

_"I... it's a good trait when they get older."_

_"You can totally do exercises to become more flexible." Brittany said as with a smile. "I can show you some great positions." the blonde whispered seductively._

_"I... uh... yeah..."_

_"I want our kids to be creative." the blonde turned back the conversation to serious grounds._

_"Says the girl who starts her own fashion brand in a couple of months."_

_"Please, for me?"_

_"What! No!"_

_"Please?"_

_"No..."_

_"Why?"_

_"First of all. It hurts."_

_"So you want me to hurt instead?" Brittany said, feigning hurt._

_"That's not fair."_

_"Are you saying that you want me to hurt instead?"_

_"No, that's not it, Britt."_

_"Sure sounds like it." the blonde huffed._

_"Don't get mad at me."_

_"I'm not. I just don't get why you'd want to hurt me."_

_"But I don't!"_

_"Obviously you do."_

_"Please, Britt..."_

_"I'm not listening."_

_"Okay. Second of all. I want our kid to remind me of you._

_"I want our kid to remind of you."_

_"But I want our baby to look good!"_

_"It would, if it would grow inside of my beautiful wifey."_

_"But you..."_

_"I got an idea!"_

_"Uh-huh..."_

_"Don't be like that. It's a great idea!" Brittany said with a wide smile. "Why don't we get a whole crew of cute little mini-Santana's and mini-me's. That way you could give birth to the first two and then I can..."_

_"Hold on a second. First two?"_

_"Yeah. Unless we would get twins! Then it would be three or four! Or imagine... triplets!"_

_"Stop right there. Why can't you pop out the first two?"_

_"Well, isn't that obvious? I'm the model. I'm not getting any younger!"_

_"Ah-hah! I knew it! I knew it!" Santana said as she raised her fist in the air. "That's your main reason! You want to look hot and have a nice body!"_

_"Now you're saying that I'd... I wouldn't be hot if I'd ever get pregnant?" Brittany teased._

_"What? No. You'd still be the most beautiful person, if not even more beautiful. You're misunderstanding me."_

_"Got ya'!"_

_"Can you keep quiet in there! I'm trying to watch 'The Little Mermaid' here!"_

_"Oh, sorry Laura. Didn't think we were that loud..."_

_"Why don't you just adopt?" Laura said._

_"Well..." "Yes."_

_"Oh my God! I want little Tina's and mini-Mike's!"_

_"Eh..."_

_"Why didn't we think of that?" Brittany all about shouted. "Come here, Laura. You're so smart!"_

_"I know. And it's not coming from you."_

_"Hey! What have I told you about that!" Santana said angrily as she looked over at Laura._

_"Sorry, San." Laura said, looking down at the floor in shame. "I'm sorry Britty. I didn't mean that."_

_"It's fine." Brittany smiled at her second favorite girl. "And you need to stop give her tips on how to become a head bitch. Little Laura is becoming cocky and she ain't even a teenager yet! I'm not sure if I'd let our future kids get near her mama and... godmother?"_

_"Godmother?" Laura asked excitedly._

_"Of course."_

_After some googling Santana and Brittany realised that it could take years to adopt if their petition would even go through._

_"I have another idea." Brittany announced after a while._

_"Not again." Santana mumbled._

_"Hey!" Brittany said and swatted at Santana's arm. "Here's the deal. You. One mini-Santana. Then we try to adopt as well. Then, mini-me." the blonde said, proud over her awesome ideas._

_"I still don't get why I have to go through that pain. First."_

_"I told you. I'm not getting any younger and I love my job."_

_"Still, you won't be able to travel that much when we get a kid to take care of. It's not like Tiny or Sam."_

_"Is that a yes?" Brittany asked, a smile tugging at her lips._

_"Maybe." Santana sighed. She was so whipped._

_"That is a yes!" Brittany raised from her chair and did a little victory dance. "I love you, Santana."_

_"It's so unfair. You know that I can't say no to you."_

_"Yeah, I know." Brittany said before leaning in to kiss her girl._

_"You guys, I can hear the smacking in here! Keep it PG or I'll tell mummy and Jo what you're doing while you're supposed to be babysitting!"_

_"You have created a monster who's disguising herself as a seven year old girl." Brittany whispered with her eyes closed as her nose nudged against Santana's._

* * *

"Baby!"

"Yeah?"

"Did you go to the park with Tiny?" Santana asked from downstairs.

"No..."

"Brittany!"

"I'm kidding, honey!" Brittany said as she giggled at her girlfriend. "Did you feed Sam?"

"Oh... uhm..."

"Santana!"

"I'm on it!"

Tiny was their new puppy that they had picked up at the animal shelter.  
After only a few minutes of sweet lady kisses, pleading and pouting from Brittany, Santana had agreed to buy a puppy for her longtime girlfriend, on the two conditions that the blonde would agree to feed it and take it out for walks most of the time.  
The moment that Brittany laid her eyes on the black great dane puppy that had been abandoned by his mother on the streets, she knew that she wanted him.  
The name, 'Tiny', was of course also Brittany's idea. Most people would know that a Great Dane should be named 'Giant' or 'Enormous' if anything when it comes to size. Santana had told Brittany that Tiny wouldn't stay tiny forever, but Brittany had shrugged it off by saying that she knew that already. Brittany had also come up with the brilliant idea that Tiny would share the same surname as the cat she had when she was younger. So, to Brittany's delight, Tiny the Great Dane's full name was Tiny Tubbington.  
At first Santana thought Brittany was joking, but she soon realized that her girlfriend was dead serious. What Brittany wanted, Brittany got. So Tiny Tubbington it was.

Since Brittany got a dog from her girlfriend, she wanted to give Santana something as well. So she gave Santana Sam. The guppy. She didn't really like that Santana named him Sam, after their friend Sam Evans. But she couldn't do much about it since Santana had agreed to name their dog Tiny Tubbington. Plus, she thought it was kind of cute of Santana to want to name their pet fish after one of their friends, even though it was only to make fun of Sam.

Their new in-house friends meant a lot more responsibility. Whenever they had to travel overstate or overseas they had to leave Tiny with Kurt or Quinn and Rachel, who had come to love the dog, and for someone to come over and feed Sam.

* * *

Today was their anniversary. The "first time we had sex"-anniversary.  
Santana didn't get why they had to celebrate that day in particular since they surely had lots of other great memories together, but Brittany insisted that they had to celebrate that day, since it also was the first time they met.

After having a nice dinner at the _Stix_, as Santana liked to call her favorite restaurant, they walked hand in hand through Central Park. Talking about anything and nothing, the silence being of the comfortable kind and the laughter being the kind that makes you live longer.  
And that's what Santana wanted. She wanted to live long, with Brittany.  
They suddenly came to a halt. There were a lot of people surrounding them by the fountain, but in their bubble only they existed.  
In that moment, their memories flooded back. How when they first met, always made a big deal out of everything. Always being so unsure of themselves and the other.  
But right now they were sure, they were happy and knew what they wanted.  
Both of them were staring lovingly at the other with their hands intertwined.

"Brittany. I have loved you since the second time I laid my eyes on you, my subconscious... I don't even know what I'm talking about." Santana laughed and Brittany just brushed brown hair away from her face as she looked lovingly at her girlfriend. Santana was so nervous and this was the first time that she hadn't prepared her speech in beforehand. Yes, the most important speech in her life, and she haven't even prepared herself. "You are the kindest, most beautiful, most loving person that I have ever met. And how can I possibly not love you? I know that you've not always been treated the way you deserve." she gulped before continuing. "But I promise you, that I will always put you first. No matter what. Want to know why?" Brittany nodded with tears forming in her eyes.

"Because I love you, Britt. You're the reason that I want to be where I am today, because where you are, I'll always be. That's why I want to ask you..." Santana fumbled in her pocket until she found the item she was looking for. In her hand she held a 18 carat gold engagement ring with a heart shaped sapphire on it. It was simple, yet perfect for Brittany. It was the color of those eyes that she had been drawn to the moment she saw Brittany. It had been the first ring that caught her eyes when she went looking for it all those months ago. It was the ring she wanted to accompany the promise ring she gave Brittany all those years ago.  
In her peripheral vision she saw some of the people passing by looking their way.  
She had just waited for the perfect moment to ask for Brittany to become her wife. This was it.

"Brittany Susan Pierce..."

"Wait!" Brittany shouted almost breathlessly. Now Santana noticed some of the people passing by stopping in their tracks, still looking at them. How nosey.

"Babe, now's not the time to interrupt." Santana felt her heart beat faster and faster. Her mind was exploding with thoughts and suddenly she didn't feel so sure of herself anymore. Maybe she had waited too long to ask? How many years was it again? Maybe Brittany didn't want to marry her anymore? Maybe Brittany didn't want _her_ anymore? All the talks about kids? _What if she's breaking up with me... what if she's..._

"I want to say a few words too, please?" Brittany did her signature pout that always made Santana give in. _Way too easy..._

"Okay, go on." Santana gulped audibly as she nodded for Brittany to speak. She had presented her feelings for Brittany, it was not like she hadn't done it before. But this was different. This was about spending the rest of their lives together as more than just lovers, as a couple, soulmates, it was a promise of being together forever and maybe start a family, with dogs, fishes and kids. Whatever it was that Brittany wanted to say, it could possibly break her.

"First. I want to tell you that I love you. So much. I can see that you're nervous right now, but don't be." Brittany began and reached forward to take one of Santana's hands in hers again, they interlaced their fingers and Brittany made small circles with her thumb. Santana felt her heart race, it was a good start. But it could also end in a disaster. "I, I have never told you this, because I thought that you would think of me as a creepy stalker." Santana's eyes widened in surprise. "I was probably your biggest fan even before I met you in person. I saved magazine pages featuring your art and about you..." Brittany gulped.

"Really?" Santana smiled.

"Really. I still got them. I even got some of your first published works, from Macaroni Magazine."

"Oh my God, Britt." Santana hugged her girlfriend, almost forgetting about her racing heart. "That's so cool!"

"You don't think it's creepy?"

"Not one bit!" Santana thought back at the gift waiting for Brittany in their apartment, hoping that the blonde wouldn't think it'd be creepy...  
Suddenly she was brought back to the reality, realizing that Brittany had interrupted her proposal and that there might not be any need for a gift afterwards. Her smile faltered.

"Good, well, I just thought I'd confess that." Brittany paused and smiled shyly. "Because. I really love you and I have loved you for years. I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting for me, but I'm glad you did. All these years... and when we met each other, have been amazing, _but_..."

"I think so too." Santana choked out, dreading the '_but' _that was about to come.

"But. I hope to be able to make it up for you in the future..." Santana could finally breathe again. Brittany wasn't breaking up with her, at least not yet. She was talking about the future, about _their_ future.

"I had planned this long speech, for once." Brittany laughed awkwardly before taking a tiny step away from Santana. "But all I can focus on right now is this beautiful, cute, gorgeous, adorable, sexy... loving, amazing, creative, incredible... fantastic, fierce, femme, phenomenal... I could keep going the whole evening... woman standing right in front of me, that I would like, no, _love_, to spend the rest of my life with." Brittany brushed some hair away from Santana's face and leaned in to plant a quick peck on Santana's pouty lips. "I love you." Now it was Brittany's turn to fumble with her hand in her pocket and it was Santana's turn to hold back a sob.

Brittany quickly found the black velvet box in her pocket where she had kept it for months. She was confident. This was the question she had wanted to ask for months, even years. When she actually sat down and began planning on when to ask, the second year anniversary for when they became an official couple had been the obvious date. But proposing on a completely different date had been the original plan. Because who wouldn't want to have another day to celebrate on. An extra day with awesome celebration sex. Not that their usual sex was bad, not at all.

But now when she heard where Santana was going, she had to interrupt. She couldn't let Santana be the one to ask when she herself wanted to ask _the_ question that might change their future together. Call it selfish, but she wanted to be the one to propose, because that was something Santana deserved.  
She fell down on one knee in front of a chocked Santana.

"Brittany Susan Pierce, are you stealing my proposal?" Santana choked out.

"Now is not the time to interrupt." Brittany said in a mocking tone, to quote what Santana had said just moments ago.

Brittany opened the small velvet box and held up the most gorgeous ring on the planet. A golden engagement ring with smaller diamonds around the whole band and a ruby gemstone in the middle.

"Santana Lopez, the most amazing person that I have ever met... will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

"Britt..." Santana said in adoration.

"That's not a yes?"

"Obviously, _yes_... I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Santana smiled, happy tears brimming her eyes. "Don't be ridiculous, you knew that I was going to ask you."

Brittany came of up from the ground and leaned in to, finally, kiss her fiancée. And in-between kisses "I love You's" were murmured.

Santana wanted to be the one to propose. But how could she possibly be mad at her girl, her fiancée, her soon-to-be wife, the love of her life.  
Because even though she wasn't the one to pop the question, she still got her girl.

* * *

A few feet away a middle aged man with a heavy Indian accent and shorthaired blonde woman with matching tracksuits walked passed the kissing couple.

"Look Sue. That's what I call love."

"That's absurd. I need circumstantial evidence for the word 'love' to be spoken around me."

"You don't see it with your own eyes? That. Kids in love. That's what I call..."

"_Achievement_. I've heard that one before. Be quite now, or I'll send you back to your little mart on the prairie. You are a disappointment. "

"How many times do I have to tell you this? There are no prairies in New York City."

"Does it bother you that there's no prairie here or should I create one for you? Keep your eyes on young Kesha and J-Lo over there, they..."

"That's S-Lo but..." Sue was already jogging away from him before he could finish his sentence.

"_Love_ you say? I _love _myself..." Sue smirked at herself as she sped away. "Two more laps around the park, praire man!"

* * *

They held onto each other for dear life as they walked back to their apartment.  
Brittany, of course, had to lift her soon-to-be wife over the doorstep as they got inside. For once, she didn't struggle with the lock.

"What is this Britt?" Santana giggled as Brittany let her down and the brunette got a chance to look on the floor which was covered in rose petals and lit candles.

"Just thought it'd surprise my wifey." Brittany grinned widely.

"This is so cheesy!"

"Only for you, honey."

"I actually got a surprise for you too." Santana smiled as she remembered the frame waiting on the wall in their bedroom.

"What? What is it?" Brittany said in excitement as she looked at her fiancée, her eyes gleaming with happiness.

"It's in the bedroom." Santana said casually, but apparently Brittany heard it in a more suggestive tone.

"Oh..." Brittany smirked before lifting up Santana again. Santana quickly put her arm around Brittany's neck. The blonde looked down at Santana and for every slow step she took, she leaned down to kiss the woman in her arms.

Their short trip to the bedroom ended all too soon, and if Santana could decide, she would always be lifted like the way Brittany had just lift her. _Imagine if we had kids..._  
The bed was covered in rose petals and the room smelled like scented vanilla candles. A box of chocolate laid on their bedside table, together with a bottle of champagne.  
Brittany carefully put down Santana on the bed and straddled her before leaning down to keep kissing her slowly.

"Baby, you planned all of this?" Santana whispered as she felt Brittany's breath on her lips and her blue eyes boring into hers.

"Uh-huh, Kurt helped." Brittany said before leaning down to press her lips against Santana's.

That was only the beginning of a very, very long night filled with love.  
But not only night, it was the beginning of something bigger, it was the beginning of their piece of perfect.

* * *

Brittany hadn't noticed Santana's surprise yet, so in need of a short lovemaking break, Santana decided that it was time to show her fiancée what she had done. She nudged the blonde nuzzling into her so she could get her attention. When Brittany looked up Santana pointed towards the wall on the other side of the room.  
Brittany slowly turned around and her eyes followed the direction that Santana was pointing towards.  
On their wall was the biggest photo collage Brittany had ever seen. It actually covered most of the wall.  
She turned around again and looked in disbelief at Santana who only giggled at the surprised look of Brittany.

"Come here." Santana rolled around so she could raise up from the bed. She laced her fingers with Brittany's and took her with her so they stood right in front of the framed collage that measured... big. Still, she could take it all down and put in an album if they had to move somewhere else.

"What even..." Brittany was speechless as her eyes hovered over the pictures. "You..." Brittany looked between a certain picture that caught her by surprise, and her fiancée. She couldn't believe this.

"I know."

"You knew all along?" It had been the only secret that Brittany had kept from Santana. But apparently it was exposed and out there now.

"No." Santana shrugged casually and smiled. Then she felt soft lips crash down on her own and she nearly fell backwards. "_You_ knew?" the Latina said in chock as she turned to her fiancée.

"Well, I told you that I was a big fan, didn't I?" I actually got a bit starstruck when you walked in..."

The collage was pictures of them, including small comments. It was pictures of them together or alone. It was everything she could find from their lives in New York since they met.  
In the middle sat a piece of paper with the words 'SPOT SAVED FOR WEDDING PHOTO' and other spots had notes saying 'SPOT SAVED FOR THE FUTURE' on them.

Santana had managed to get in contact with most of the American magazine that had ever published something about her or Brittany. It had been many, but she did it, with a little help from Rachel, Quinn and Kurt.  
But it was not only magazine cutouts. It was mostly their own photographs.  
It was everything from pictures of Brittany in Amsterdam, the unicorn shoot, their first date, the night when they accidentally found themselves out on a double date with Quinn and Rachel, them kissing, their first vacation together, them with friends, from the Fashion Lies Everywhere days, when they went to the animal shelter to pick up Tiny... It was every memory they had shared, documented on this wall.  
She had almost gone crazy when looking through old boxes for polaroids, memory cards and undeveloped film that she might have forgotten. She had even found Jacob Ben Israel's memory card from the Valentina Awards a little over two years ago. Since that was the night when Brittany said 'I love you' for you the first time, one of those pictures also got a spot inside the ginormous frame.

When she was looking through old memory cards, she found that picture. The picture that made Brittany's eyes widen and ask if she had known all along, the photo with the note saying 'The first time we laid our eyes on each other'. She barely even remember taking it, she didn't even know that Brittany was on it until she found it deep down in that box.  
However, thinking back, she remembered that day like it was yesterday.

_"I got an appointment with the Editor-in-chief. My name is Santana Lopez", the Latina told the receptionist, a very young, but beautiful blonde with glasses framing her deep blue eyes and long blonde hair framing her face, and a wide smile grazing her lips. Santana couldn't help but smile back. The girl was gorgeous._

_"Yes, Holly will be down here in a few minutes. You can take a seat in our super-comfy lounge in the meantime" the receptionist said with her angelic voice after a short call. Santana thanked her and walked over to an armchair located in the lounge area._

It was the day when she was called in for that meeting with Holly Holliday for a possible position as their in-house photographer. Since it was her first time being at the headquarters, she snapped a couple of pictures of the purple interior and the people, so she would remember what it was like in there if she'd never step her foot there again she would at least have the memory of it in the photos. She wasn't entirely sure if you were allowed to take picture in there, but she was sneaky with her camera and no one seemed to mind, not even the receptionist that was looking right at her. When the receptionist noticed that Santana was looking at her too, she averted her eyes and blushed. Santana then zoomed in and snapped a photo of her. Smiling as she looked down at the photo.  
She hoped that she would be back, so she could meet the receptionist again. And for the job too, obviously.  
She was considering walking up to the beautiful blonde again, maybe start a light conversation.  
But in just that moment she saw another blonde appear, the people in the hall moved away like it was some kind of Goddess who appeared in front of them.  
Yep, that was her call to meet with the Editor-in-chief.

Little did Santana know back then, but it was the first time out of many that she went to the Valentina Magazine headquarters. But only once did she meet that one receptionist with eyes blue as the ocean and a smile that could melt even the roughest exteriors.  
Her fiancée.

"You were so cute in those glasses, smiling and telling me to sit in the lounge area..." Santana whispered. "Sexy teacher."

"Yeah? You were kind of cute too, in that... wait... hm..."

"I don't remember either."

"No, I remember. Black dress, black blazer... and those pumps... where did they go?"

"Oh my, Britt!" Santana giggled and swatted at her fiancée. "Creep!"

"Oh, you love it baby!"

"Yes, ma'am. I do."

"Preparing, are we?"

"No need to prepare, saying 'I do' to you will come as easy as taking a photo."

"Mhm, baby." Brittany mumbled before kissing her girl.

"Hold on!" Santana interrupted before Brittany could lean in for a second kiss. "Care to explain why I never met you at the office again?"

"Easy. That same day, Holly introduced me to April Rhodes, you know, my old agency. Both of them saw my potential as a model, especially that one moment when I almost fell and dropped coffee during a business meeting. I wore my 6 inch Jimmy Choo's and I did a really nice ninja save there." Brittany said, remembering that awesome save when she almost spilled coffee all over the place and on those important people, too. "Just like that my internship at Valentina Magazine turned into a contract with Rhodes & Rhodes as a model."

"How come you never told me about it? All those times I've said that our first meeting was in Amsterdam..."

"Well, first I would've had to come out as a creep, for being a big fan of you already back then. Because, no way would I have remembered you otherwise. Or maybe I would, because, I mean, you're just so hot." Brittany said in a sultry voice that made Santana shiver. "But yeah, I didn't know how you'd react to me being a little crazy fangirl. Besides, I didn't want you to think you were a bad girlfriend, slash fiancée, for not remembering." Brittany winked.

"Hey! I'm still an awesome girlfriend, and I'll be the best fiancée and wife ever. I wouldn't have judged. I mean, look at me? Look at my work? I'm pretty fucking awe..."

Santana didn't get to finish because the next second she hit the mattress with a loud 'oomph', Brittany still attached to her front and her lips.

* * *

After another hour or so of kissing and cuddling Santana realized something very important...

"Where's Tiny? He can burn down the whole building, I swear! At least Sam can't get out of the bowl..." Santana exclaimed as she realized that she hadn't seen the dog since they got in. Tiny usually greeted them for the usual patting on his head and if he didn't get it immediately he should've interrupted them in bed by now.

"Don't worry. I called in a debt from Kurt." Brittany said as she pulled Santana back down to the bed.

"You left Tiny with Kurt? He's going to come home dressed up in leather! Again!"

"No, I finally remembered to tell him that Tiny only like fluffy materials and tulle, so Tiny will most likely come home dressed up as a ballerina!" Brittany squealed happily.

"You did what?" Santana said and looked down in disbelief at the blonde.

"I love you, wifey." Brittany mumbled as she nuzzled closer to her soon to be wife, tightening her grip around Santana.

"I love you too." Santana whispered and smiled contently. She had her eyes closed and just enjoyed the feeling of everything. Of life. She didn't care if their dog would come home wearing a tutu or a leather cap. She finally had her life pieced together and it was perfect, far better than she ever could've imagined.

"Mhm..." Brittany hummed in delight. "I'm so going to get you pregnant." she murmured seductively before letting her tongue move along the Latina's earlobe.

Santana shot her eyes wide open. Her picture of Brittany's baby bump disappeared as she imagined Brittany impregnating her. But the erotic image disappeared even faster than it had appeared and she imagined Brittany touching her growing belly... pressing out a little kid... nuh-uh, her body hurt just thinking of it. _That's so not happening_...

Santana quickly turned their bodies around and suddenly Brittany was underneath her, her legs straddling her blonde.

"You're beautiful."

"You are beautiful." Brittany replied with a smile, her cheeks tainting a bit pink, Santana's word still having that affect on her.

"No, really, Britt."

Brittany stayed silent as she tried to reach for her phone on the bedside table.  
She opened the camera app and angled her phone up at Santana.

"Wanky." Santana smirked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, shush." Brittany giggled. "Come here." the blonde whispered and motioned for Santana to lay her head on her naked chest. "Right now, you on top of me, you're the definition of the perfect picture. Always."

***FLASH***

* * *

**A/N: That's it.  
This last part was inspired by one of my favorite romcoms, A Lot Like Love (watch it, if you haven't).  
****Again, thank you all for reading! You are all awesome!  
****I got a one-shot written that I might post on here someday, and who knows after that.**

**And yes! I let Brittany be the one to take the first step when they met back in Amsterdam (even though Santana was the first one to see Brittany!). Yes. I let Brittany say 'I Love You' first. Yes. I even let Brittany steal the proposing, What can I say? I love the Brittz, almost as much as Santana does!  
****However, Santana was the first one to speak to Brittany.**

**Does anyone remember the early hints in the first chapter and when Santana mentioned that she recognised the unknown blonde in Amsterdam from somewhere? Did any of you give it a second thought back then, huh?**

**Bye for now! (:**


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